Air Passenger Duty: Repayments

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will take steps to end the practice of budget airlines  (a) not to refund air passenger duty to their customers who do not use their flights and  (b) levying handling charges to make refunds of air passenger duty to customers who do not use their flights unviable; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Air Passenger Duty (APD) is a statutory duty levied on aircraft operators and liability is determined based on the number of passengers they carry from UK airports. It is for aircraft operators to decide whether to absorb this levy or pass it on to their customers and whether a refund is made of air passenger duty, or any other portion of the ticket price if the passenger does not travel.
	Many airlines, not just low cost airlines, specify on their on-line terms and conditions before booking that charges are applicable for refunds including APD.
	The imposition of a reasonable service fee was approved by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and further recognised in the 2007 OFT reference to the Competition Commission. Passengers are always advised to check the terms and conditions of a ticket before booking.

Departments: Public Transport

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what incentives she has considered to encourage staff in her Department to use public transport.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department has for several years made available for full and part time permanent staff, who have been Civil Servants for a full three months, season ticket advances to assist in the cost of their journey to work by public transport. All such loans are interest free and provided they do not exceed £5,000 do not attract income tax on "interest free loans" under the Inland Revenue's "benefits in kind" rules. All season ticket loans are repaid from deductions from salary within the term of the loan, normally 12 months.
	DVLA provides a shuttle bus service between its two HQ sites to reduce excessive vehicle use and provides in-house bus services to a number of local areas.
	VCA successfully campaigned for bus stops outside their Bristol offices, to encourage staff to use the local services.

Departments: Publicity

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the cost effectiveness of advertising commissioned by her Department in the last 12 months.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The major campaign activity undertaken by the Department in the 2006-07 fiscal year was in support of the THINK! road safety; Act on CO2 (launched in March 07); aviation security informing travellers about new security rules; and the continuous registration campaign (car tax evasion).
	We measure the effectiveness of our campaigns through regular independent pre and post advertising tracking research which explored:
	the attitudes and behaviour of the general public towards the above campaign issues
	the awareness of each burst of advertising to inform us what percentage of our target audience has been reached and the message take-out.
	For the THINK! campaign we also conduct an annual THINK! survey to track long term shifts in driver and public beliefs and behaviours towards road safety, details of which are available at www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk. Ultimately, for THINK! we are judged by the number of people killed or seriously injured and we are on course to meet our demanding road safety targets.
	On the continuous registration campaign, we demonstrate the effectiveness of our advertising, in addition to tracking research, in terms of the impact on volumes of licensing/statutory off road notification (SORN) transactions processed and volumes of late licensing penalties issued to those who delay renewing their licence for two months post licence expiry. We also take into account evasion levels as reported in the annual roadside survey.
	Finally, we also measure how effectively we buy advertising space compared to other advertisers and can demonstrate that we are achieving highly competitive prices for the taxpayer.

Floods

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what evidential basis the Environment Agency reaches its conclusions about the probability of particular flooding episodes; whether any change will be made to the Agency's mechanisms for assessing that probability following the recent floods; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The Environment Agency uses the methods contained in the Flood Estimation Handbook (published by the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology), in conjunction with the data on rainfall and river flows collected during a flood event, to assess the probability of such an event.
	The data from each event becomes part of the ongoing record and will inform future updates of the Flood Estimation Handbook. There are currently no plans to change this mechanism.

Floods

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he intends to revise the Government's first response to the Making space for water consultation following the recent floods.

Phil Woolas: The first response to Making space for water, the cross-Government flood and coastal erosion risk management strategy, set out what we plan to do. A detailed programme of work has been developed to take this forward.
	The programme is already addressing some of the issues highlighted by recent events, but we will consider whether there are any further implications, including changes to our long-term aims and objectives, following the completion of the lessons learned exercise.

Floods

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what standards are required of water companies to ensure that pumping stations for drainage of low-lying areas are themselves protected against flooding.

Phil Woolas: Sewage pumping stations are designed to convey flows arising from a once in 30 years storm. The majority of stations are designed with submersible pumps and many have duplicated multi pump arrangements to mitigate against the failure of one pump. As part of the design check, they should be reliable, efficient and capable of dealing with the once in 30 years level of storm intensity at the pumping station itself. Emergency overflows are also provided at most sewage pumping stations to further protect the station from flooding in extreme wet weather events. The detailed design and site specific design of such facilities is a matter for the water companies and, where appropriate, the planning authority.

Floods: Hertfordshire

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of the damage caused by flooding in Hertfordshire in the last five years;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with the Environmental Agency on improving flood defences in Hertfordshire in light of the recent weather conditions;
	(3)  what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of flood defences in Hertfordshire in light of the recent weather conditions;
	(4)  how much his Department spent on  (a) managing and  (b) improving flood defences in Hertfordshire in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: DEFRA provides the Environment Agency with a budget (£436 million this year) towards its national flood risk management activities. Decisions on which improvement projects to promote with this money rest with the Environment Agency within the overall policy and prioritisation framework set by the Government. I have not yet had any discussions with the Agency about Hertfordshire in particular.
	I understand from the Environment Agency that the only significant flooding that has occurred in the last five years was in 2002 when the River Colne overtopped its banks adjacent to Lower High Street, Watford. 25 commercial properties were flooded.
	The Environment Agency completed works to construct a flood wall at the location in March 2007. The Environment Agency carries out routine inspections of flood defence assets. Currently, 95 per cent. of all Environment Agency and third party-owned flood defence assets within Hertfordshire are at or above a nationally defined target level.
	The Environment Agency operates a risk-based inspection programme of all flood defence structures located upon the main river network. The frequency of these inspections is determined by a risk assessment of the consequences of failure of a particular structure. The rolling programme of inspection covers Hertfordshire and the rest of the country.
	The recent weather conditions have not presented new information that creates a need to revise this inspection programme for any main river systems within Hertfordshire. All main river flood defences within Hertfordshire are fully assessed in terms of their adequacy and priority for any maintenance needed. Where third party-owned assets require maintenance the Environment Agency inform the owners of what is needed and follow up to ensure that the works are carried out.
	The following tables provide information on Environment Agency spending on  (a) managing and  (b) improving flood defences in Hertfordshire in each of the last five years for which the information is available.
	
		
			   Amount spent (£) 
			  Managing flood defences  
			 2007-08 (1 )890,000 
			 2006-07 870,000 
			 2005-06 831,000 
			 2004-05 799,000 
			 2003-04 (2 )750,000 
			  Improving flood defences  
			 2006-07 435,000 
			 2005-06 122,000 
			 2004-05 270,000 
			 2003-04 415,000 
			 2002-03 240,000 
			 (1 )Amount scheduled for current financial year (2) This figure is estimated

Afghanistan

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress is being made in development and reconstruction in Helmand province.

Des Browne: The Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team has implemented over 130 projects to provide tangible benefits to local Afghans, often with engineering support from the military. Examples include the building, extending or refurbishing of 12 schools, the construction of three new parks—including a women's park, six projects improving local healthcare facilities—including the construction of a 20-room midwifery hostel and five projects improving the rivers and irrigation canals that enable local farmers to earn a living.

Afghanistan

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he next expects to discuss with military commanders the helicopter lift requirements for operations in Afghanistan.

Des Browne: I meet frequently with military commanders to discuss operations in Afghanistan and we keep our force levels and equipment requirements under constant review. We have sufficient helicopters to undertake the key tasks required of them but we all recognise that operational commanders would be able to do more with additional resources. For that reason, we have announced the purchase of six additional Merlin Helicopters and the conversion and earlier availability of eight Chinooks.

Darfur

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what support he has provided to the African Union Mission to Darfur.

Bob Ainsworth: The UK has, over the last three years, provided significant assistance to the African Union Mission in Darfur. This includes vehicles and other equipment, technical military advice and training to a number of troop contributing countries and airlift for Nigerian soldiers. Over and above this ongoing effort, we currently have six specialist military officers in key positions, ensuring our military contribution is focused in those areas where we can have best effect. We will consider future requests for support from either the African Union or the United Nations.

Falklands Anniversary

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will assess the impact of the events held to mark the 25th anniversary of the Falklands conflict.

Derek Twigg: The veterans, widows and families involved in the events held both in the UK and in the Falkland Islands considered them to have been a tremendous success. They appreciated the opportunity to reflect on their experiences and the courage, sacrifice and professionalism of all those, both military and civilian who contributed to the liberation of the islands in 1982. The commemorations also helped to educate a new generation about the conflict and underlined the professionalism of our armed forces both then and now.

Armed Forces: Deployment

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British troops are stationed in  (a) Europe,  (b) Africa,  (c) the Middle East and  (d) Asia.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 5 July 2007
	 The strength of UK regular forces posted outside the UK is available in Tri-Service Publication (TSP) 6—Global Location of UK regular forces. However, due to the introduction of a new Joint Personnel Administration System (JPA) the latest publication for the numbers of Naval Service and Army personnel was on 1 October 2006 and is available at:
	www.dasa.mod.uk/natstats/tsp6/tsp6_oct06.pdf
	The most recent data for the Royal Air Force (RAF) (which is provisional also because of JPA) was published on l April 2006 and is available at:
	www.dasa.mod.uk/natstats/tsp6/tsp6_apr06.pdf
	Defence Analytical Services Agency (DASA) are currently validating JPA RAF location data and expect to publish provisional RAF figures for 1 July 2006 and 1 October 2006 by the end of July 2007.
	Copies of TSP 6 are available in the Library of the House of Commons.

Army: Manpower

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) assessed requirement and  (b) numbers of personnel in post is for each army infantry battalion.

Bob Ainsworth: Officials are currently collating this information. I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Departments: Private Finance Initiative

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total cost is of all private finance initiative projects for which his Department has responsibility completed since 1997; and what the projected cost is of such projects commissioned or under way.

Bob Ainsworth: The total cost is of all private finance initiative projects are provided at HM Treasury's website, http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/documents/public_private_partnerships/ppp_pfi_stats.cfm. Total cost information is expressed as the sum of unitary charge payments. Unitary charge payments are projections and are conditional on the performance of the private sector contractor. They frequently include inflation, service provision and major refurbishment costs as well as capital repayments.
	The information provided at HM Treasury's website provides unitary charge payment information up until 2033-34. The Department has three projects whose life exceeds 2034. These projects and the projected total unitary charge payments for each are as follows:
	
		
			  Project name  Estimated Total unitary charge payment (£ million) 
			 Allenby/Connaught 12,816.76 
			 ASTUTE Class Training Service (ACTS) 551.15 
			 Colchester Garrison 2,900.56

Military Bases: Wales

John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the future of the Special Forces Support Unit at MoD St Athan; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: The UK Joint Special Forces Support Group (SFSG) is an integral part of the UK Special Forces Group and falls under the operational command of the Director of Special Forces. It is our established policy not to comment on special forces matters.
	However, I can say that since the SFSG was stood up in April 2006 it has served with distinction in the field and is already providing the UK Special Forces Group with a significantly enhanced capability as envisaged.

Navy: Defence Equipment

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the planning assumption is for the service life of  (a) type 23 frigates,  (b) type 45 destroyers and  (c) future surface combatants.

Bob Ainsworth: Our current planning assumptions are that on average the Type 23 frigates will be in service for 27 years and the Type 45 anti aircraft destroyers for 25 years. The programme for the procurement of the future surface combatant is still at an early stage and the service life for these ships has yet to be determined.

Navy: Military Bases

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his timetable is for publishing the results of the naval bases review.

Bob Ainsworth: We have said from the outset of the naval base review (NBR), that its outcome needs to be coherent with other key maritime industrial strategy projects and programmes. It is of paramount importance that we do this in order to determine an overall 'best for Defence' outcome and the best value for the taxpayer.
	The Ministry of Defence is therefore engaging with other Government Departments to assess the wider implications for the different NBR options. While this complex work is progressing well, further work is required before final conclusions can be reached.

Afghanistan: Drugs

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what  (a) financial and  (b) other assistance was provided to the Government of Afghanistan to tackle the narcotics industry in that country in each year since 2002; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: The total financial assistance provided by the Government to the Afghan Government to tackle the narcotics industry each year since 2002 is as follows:
	
		
			  Total Afghan counter narcotics spend 
			  Financial year  £ million 
			 2002-03 23.1 
			 2003-04 31.3 
			 2004-05 33.2 
			 2005-06 92.8 
			 2006-07 82 
		
	
	Our support comprises direct financial assistance and practical support, such as developing law enforcement and criminal justice institutions, mentoring police and judges, and technical assistance to build the capacity of government institutions. Of this year's £82 million, £37.6 million will be invested in alternative legal livelihoods and development. As Afghanistan's G8 partner nation on counter narcotics, the UK lobbies for continued and increased international assistance and support for the Afghan Government's National Drug Control Strategy (NDCS). We are also helping the Afghans to sharpen the implementation of the NDCS which has four priorities: targeting the trafficker; strengthening and diversifying legal rural livelihoods; reducing demand; and developing state institutions.

Columbia: Politics and Government

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the political situation in Colombia.

Kim Howells: Colombia has suffered from 40 years of internal conflict, fuelled by the illegal drugs trade. In his five years as President, Alvaro Uribe has achieved remarkable advances: security is much improved; violent crime is hugely reduced; 35,000 paramilitaries have demobilised; and the economy is prospering.
	President Uribe's Colombia is a key UK ally in the region. UK co-operation with Colombia focuses on the fight against drugs and improving the difficult human rights situation. It is one of constructive engagement rather than uncritical support. We support the efforts of President Uribe to tackle the country's serious inter-connected problems. But we can and do remind the government of Colombia of the need to address areas of concern vigorously.
	On drugs, co-operation is close and effective. President Uribe's government is committed to improving the difficult human rights situation. But serious concerns remain: illegal armed groups commit wide ranging abuses, and threats to trade unionists and human rights defenders continue, and are unacceptable. Extra-judicial killings are rising. 49 per cent. of Colombians live in poverty.
	We welcomed President Uribe's decision in June to release a number of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (PARC) operatives, including Rodrigo Granda, as a positive step forward for a path to lasting peace in Colombia. It has been disappointing that the PARC have not responded positively to President Uribe's bold move. Along with EU partners and others in the international community, we have expressed our outrage at the killings in June of 11 Colombian hostages held by the PARC, and extended our condolences to all those affected by this tragedy.

Convention on Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the United Nations convention on suppression of acts of nuclear terrorism entered into force; when the United Kingdom  (a) signed and  (b) ratified the convention; what responsibilities signatory states have to report on implementation of the convention in (i) member states and (ii) their overseas territories; and what steps the Government are taking to encourage non-signatory states to sign.

Kim Howells: The International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism entered into force on 7 July. The UK signed the Convention on 14 September 2005. The legislation required to implement the Convention is now in place in the UK, and the Government are currently preparing the necessary documents to be laid before Parliament prior to ratification. The Convention imposes an obligation on States Parties to report to the UN Secretary-General the final outcome of criminal proceedings undertaken in respect of the offences set out in the Convention. States Parties will also be expected to report to the committees of the UN Security Council that monitor implementation of States' counter-terrorism and non-proliferation obligations, on the implementation of their obligations under the Convention in a more general sense. While the Overseas Territories will not be included at the time of the UK's ratification, there remains the possibility of extending the Convention to the Overseas Territories following consultation with them and the passing of any necessary legislation in each Territory. With our international partners, the UK has strongly encouraged all States to sign and ratify the Convention. Most recently, in a joint statement on counter-terrorism issued at the Heiligendamm Summit on 8 June, the leaders of the G8 called on all States to ratify the Convention.

Israel

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to Arab governments to secure an end to attacks on Israel; what response has been received; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: The UK holds regular discussions with Arab governments on ways to reduce violence in the Middle East, including attacks against Israel. These are often focussed on efforts to implement UN Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs), including those aimed at preventing attacks on Israel. In May we lobbied a number of regional governments, drawing their attention to the provisions of UNSCR 1747 and seeking their support in implementing the provisions more effectively. Among other things, this resolution imposed a legally binding embargo on the export/transfer of all arms from Iran, including to Hezbollah and Palestinian rejectionist groups. We also regularly raise the implementation of UNSCR 1701, which brought an end to the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel in 2006. We enjoy the support of many Arab partners in our efforts to implement relevant UN Resolutions.

Sudan: Peace Negotiations

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what measures he has put in place to ensure that there is a Darfur-Darfur dialogue in place before the forthcoming peace talks in Mombasa.

Meg Munn: The peace talks in Mombasa are intended to bring together factions of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) to agree a common position on the Darfur Political Process. Not all factions have agreed to attend the Mombasa meeting.
	The Sudan People's Liberation Movement has scheduled a meeting of all the rebel groups, including the SLM, and Darfuri civil society to take place in south Sudan in August. This will build on the Darfur-Darfur Dialogue.
	We, and our partners, are pressing all sides to commit to this renewed political process and to implement their commitments to the international community.

Venezuala: Oil

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on Venezuela's oil supply offer to Iran.

Kim Howells: On his recent visit to Iran, President Chavez signed a large number of co-operation agreements with the Iranian government, including a number in relation to oil exploration and petrochemical production. It appears that the two governments are now working on the exact detail of those agreements.
	Our embassies in Caracas and Tehran will continue to monitor what emerges from this partnership.

Zimbabwe: Conferences

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has sought clarification of the policy of the government of Portugal on whether to invite Robert Mugabe and other representatives of the Government of Zimbabwe to attend the EU-Africa summit in Portugal in December 2007.

Meg Munn: My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister met Prime Minister Socrates of Portugal on 9 July and discussed the EU-Africa summit. They agreed a diplomatic solution was needed regarding the matter of Zimbabwean representation.

Committee on Standards in Public Life

Norman Baker: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will make a statement on the future role of  (a) the Committee on Standards in Public Life and  (b) the Business Appointments Committee.

Edward Miliband: Both the Committee on Standards in Public Life and the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments continue to play important roles in upholding standards in public life. The Ministerial Code published on 3 July, strengthened the provisions relating to business appointments making clear that Ministers must seek the advice of the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments and that they will be expected to abide by its advice. The Committee on Standards in Public Life is currently in discussion with Government about its forward programme of work.

Contracts for Services: Religion

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will estimate how many faith-based organisations  (a) received grants and  (b) were contracted to deliver (i) local authority and (ii) central government services in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: This information is not held centrally. The Government recognise the role which faith-based organisations play in delivering public services through grants and contracts with central and local government. The Government want to ensure that the range of community based organisations, including faith-based groups, can access the support available to perform their multiple roles of providing voice to citizens and in building communities. The Office of the Third Sector's Strategic Partners programme includes funding to some faith-based organisations to enable them to provide representative 'voice' for the third sector, or an element of third sector activity, at national level, including on public service delivery issues.
	The Third Sector Review, conducted jointly by HM Treasury and the Cabinet Office, as part of the 2007 comprehensive spending review, looking at the future role of the third sector in economic and social regeneration, held targeted events for faith groups as part of its consultation process in 2006. The review also received written representation from faith groups. The Government will seek to ensure continued dialogue with these and other groups and that all of the measures in the Third Sector Review, including the £80 million small grants fund announced in the Budget, will be as accessible as possible to a wide range of organisations.

Departments: Freedom of Information

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will list the requests made to the Cabinet Office under the  (a) Freedom of Information Act (FOI) 2000 and  (b) Environmental Information Regulations in the last six months; and what the (i) FOI case reference number, (ii) request summary, (iii) request outcome and (iv) where appropriate, reason for exemption was in each case.

Edward Miliband: Information relating to Freedom of Information and Environmental Information requests is published on a quarterly basis by the Ministry of Justice. Information for January—March 2007 was published on 25 June 2007,  Official Report, column 10WS, copies of the document are in the Libraries of the House. Information for April—June 2007 is due to be published in the autumn.

Films: Violence

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the change in the level of violence portrayed in films, particularly of torture, in the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: None. Under the terms of the Video Recordings Act, I have designated the President and vice presidents of the British Board of Film Classification as the authority responsible for considering content and classifying videos. They also consider cinema films on behalf of local authorities. The Board addresses the nature and degree of violence through the classification system.

Olympic Games: Greater London

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 20 June 2007,  Official Report, column 1783W, on Olympic Games: Greater London, in what ways the advice remains pertinent to the formulation of government policy.

Tessa Jowell: I have been asked to reply 
	as Minister for the Olympics.
	The advice provided by KPMG is being used to inform our ongoing strategy for managing the Olympic project and costs which will be kept under close scrutiny throughout.

Tourists: Expenditure

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much was spent by  (a) domestic and  (b) foreign tourists in England in each year since 1997.

Margaret Hodge: The tables show expenditure on visits to England by  (a) UK residents where this included an overnight stay and  (b) overseas residents.
	
		
			  Expenditure by UK residents on overnight visits in England 
			   Current prices (£ million) 
			 1997 17.3 
			 1998 16.4 
			 1999 19.1 
			 2000 19.9 
			 2001 20.3 
			 2002 20.8 
			 2003 20.6 
			 2004 19.0 
			 2005 17.5 
			 2006 16.2 
			 (1) The methodology for the UKTS changed in 2005 meaning that comparisons with previous years should be treated with caution. This change occurred due to concerns with the quality of 2004 data, which is thought to be an under-representation of the true position. There was also a change in survey methodology in 2000, though figures for 1997-99 have been reworked to allow comparisons with later data.   Source:  UK Tourism Survey (National Tourist Boards)(1) 
		
	
	
		
			  Expenditure by overseas residents during visits to England 
			   Current prices (£ million) 
			 1997 10.0 
			 1998 10.5 
			 1999 11.0 
			 2000 11.4 
			 2001 9.9 
			 2002 10.3 
			 2003 10.4 
			 2004 11.3 
			 2005 12.3 
			 2006 (provisional) 13.2 
			  Source:  International Passenger Survey (ONS) 
		
	
	In addition, a substantial number of day visits are made to, or within, England. In 2005 an estimated £37 billion was spent on tourism day visits in England by English residents. It is not possible to provide a time series for this information as the surveys are run intermittently.

Electronic Equipment: Waste Disposal

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what guidance his Department provided on the waste electrical and electronic equipment regulations to distributors of electrical and electronic equipment before 1 July; and what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of that guidance.

Malcolm Wicks: The Department published a distributor factsheet and non-statutory guidance on the UK WEEE regulations in February 2007. Further guidance on the role of distributors was issued in April to explain how distributors can fulfil their obligations under the WEEE system. We will continue to update the guidance in light of experience by distributors who have not raised any significant concerns over the guidance as it stands.

Google: Doubleclick

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether he has had discussions with  (a) the Information Commissioner on the issues of privacy and data protection in the context of Google's proposed acquisition of Doubleclick and  (b) the Office of Fair Trading on monitoring of the online marketplace and its effect on consumers, innovation and prices; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: I have had no such discussions; neither with the Information Commissioner nor the Office of Fair Trading. Privacy and data protection are matters for the Ministry of Justice. The regulatory control of mergers is a matter for the independent competition authorities with cases considered on the grounds of impact on competition in the relevant market.
	The Office of Fair Trading has recently completed a study on internet shopping. Their report available at http://www.oft.gov.uk/advice_and_resources/resource_base/market-studies/internet concludes that the rapid growth of internet shopping is a success story that benefits both consumers and businesses across a range of markets, but that both could do more to make the most of opportunities it provides.

Government Shareholding

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform pursuant to the answer of 14 June 2007,  Official Report, columns 1283-84W, on Government Shareholding, what the nature and status is of the special shares held by his Department in  (a) Rolls Royce plc and  (b) British Aerospace plc.

Stephen Timms: The information is as follows.
	 (a) The Solicitor for the Affairs of Her Majesty's Treasury, as nominee for the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, holds the Government's Special Share in Rolls-Royce Group plc, going back to when the Company was privatised in 1987.
	The purpose of the Rolls-Royce special share, which has a nominal value of £1, is to protect the UK's national security interests. These include security of supply issues associated with its nuclear business (nuclear propulsion for Royal Navy submarines) and for other defence equipment (mainly aero-engine and ship propulsion). The provisions of the special share are tailored as narrowly as possible and kept under review.
	Key features of the Rolls-Royce special share are:
	A 15 per cent. limit on the percentage of foreign shares in Rolls-Royce Group plc (the holding company) that can be held by a single foreign shareholder, or foreign shareholders acting in concert. (A foreign shareholder includes an EU national.)
	A requirement that the chief executive and the majority of directors of Rolls-Royce Group plc (the holding company) are British.
	A requirement that disposals of the whole or a material part of the nuclear business, or the group as a whole, require the consent of the Special Shareholder.
	 (b) The Solicitor for the Affairs of Her Majesty's Treasury, as nominee for the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, holds the Government's Special Share in BAE Systems plc (then known as British Aerospace plc). The purpose of the special share, created in 1985, and which has a nominal value of £1, is to protect the UK's national security interests. The provisions of the special share are tailored as narrowly as possible and kept under review.
	Key features of the BAE Systems' special share are:
	A 15 per cent. limit on the percentage of shares that can be held by any individual foreign shareholder, or group of foreign shareholders acting in concert, in the company; (A foreign shareholder includes an EU national.)
	A requirement that the chief executive and the majority of the board are British;
	A requirement that any executive chairman is to be British and, if both the chairman and the deputy chairman are non-executives, that at least one of them is British.

Heating: Carbon Emissions

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the low carbon potential of electric heating is realised.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 10 July 2007
	The Government are committed to addressing both the causes and consequences of climate change As announced in the Energy White Paper we are considering a number of policy options to reduce the carbon impact of heat, including electric heating from low carbon sources, and its use in order to determine a strategy for heat.

Minimum Wage: Personal Income

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what estimate he has made of the number of people in  (a) the UK,  (b) the West Midlands and  (c) Tamworth whose income rose on the introduction of the minimum wage.

Patrick McFadden: The Department estimates that around 1 million people in the UK stand to benefit from the 2007 uprating of the national minimum wage in October, 110,000 of which are in the West Midlands. Data at the parliamentary constituency level is not available.

Parental Leave: Industrial Disputes

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether his Department holds figures on the number of employment disputes with  (a) paternity leave and  (b) maternity leave as a primary cause of action; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: During the year 2005-06, 155 employment tribunal claims related to a person claiming to suffer a detriment and/or dismissal due to requesting or taking paternity or adoption leave or time off to assist a dependant.
	During the same year there were 1,501 employment tribunal claims made related to a person claiming to suffer a detriment and/or dismissal on grounds of pregnancy, child birth or maternity.

Paternity Leave

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what proportion of fathers eligible for paternity leave have taken paternity leave in the last 12 months; and what the average length of paternity leave was.

Patrick McFadden: The most recent data available on take-up of paternity leave is from the Maternity and Paternity Rights and Benefits: Survey of Parents 2005. The report of findings is available at the House of Commons Library and at www.berr.gov.uk/files/file27446.pdf. Statistics in this report are based on responses from a sample of mothers and fathers who had a child in December 2003 who were surveyed approximately 17 months after the child's birth.
	The survey found that 93 per cent. of fathers took some time off around the time of the birth. Of the 93 per cent. who took some time off, 79 per cent. took paternity leave and the average duration was 9.3 days. Table 9.1 in the cited report provides further information.

Tidal Power: Severn Estuary

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what plans his Department has to commission an independent strategic evaluation of all the options for exploiting tidal power in the Severn Estuary; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 9 July 2007
	A study of 'Tidal Power in the UK' currently underway and led by the Sustainable Development Commission (SDC) working together with my Department, Welsh Assembly Government, the devolved administrations and the South West Regional Development Agency is looking in some detail at the issues arising on tidal power.
	The study will provide a strategic, independent and evidence-based consideration of all the environmental, social and economic aspects of and options for tidal power both in the Severn estuary and the wider UK from a sustainable development perspective.
	The final report is expected to be published in September and will help inform any future consideration of these issues. Further details of the study can be seen at
	www.sd-commission.org.uk/pages/tidal/htm1.

Unfair Dismissal

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if his Department will undertake an assessment of the law of procedural unfairness in unfair dismissal employment disputes.

Patrick McFadden: The consultation "Resolving Disputes in the Workplace" covered this area, and in light of early responses the Government issued a supplementary review on procedural unfairness in unfair dismissal. The conclusions of this review and the Government's plans for the way forward will be published alongside those for the main consultation, in due course.

Warwick Manufacturing Group

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether the Government provide financial support to the Warwick Manufacturing Group; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: The Government do not provide general financial support to the Warwick Manufacturing Group. They have however engaged the services of the University of Warwick, of which the Warwick Manufacturing is part, to provide specific services on a range of projects designed to improve the competitiveness of UK industry.

Children: Internet

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information her Department holds on which social networking sites have  (a) adopted and  (b) not adopted mechanisms to prevent child abuse.

Vernon Coaker: This information is not held centrally.
	However, the Home Secretary's Task force for Child Protection on the Internet has set up a working group which includes representatives from social network providers, law enforcement and children's charities. This group is looking at the safety issues for children caused by the development and growth of social networking sites and is developing good practice guidelines.

Crime: Drugs

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how much and what proportion of anti-drugs spending the Government allocated to the monitoring and evaluation of the performance of the UK drugs strategy in  (a) reducing the availability of illicit drugs,  (b) educating young people,  (c) drug addiction treatment and  (d) tackling drug-related crime;
	(2)  how much and what proportion of anti-drugs spending the Government allocated to research to inform the UK drug strategy on  (a) availability of illicit drugs,  (b) young people's attitudes to drugs,  (c) treatment and  (d) drug-related crime in each year since 2002.

Vernon Coaker: The Home Office allocated £11.4 million between 2002-03 and 2006-07 on monitoring and evaluation. A further £0.9 million allocated for the current financial year.
	The success of the strategy will be measured by the Drug Harm Index, which captures a range of social and health harms caused by drugs. This is published annually by the Home Office. In terms of research and evaluation, the complex nature of drug misuse and its associated problems means that research projects often address a range of substantive issues. As such, it is difficult to break down funding into discrete themes. However key projects since 2002 have been around assessing the impact of interventions to tackle the availability and problems caused by drugs, measuring the relationship between drugs and crime, estimating the trends in drug consumption and the number of problematic users, and the relationship between drug consumption and young people. Completed projects are published on the Home office Research, Development and Statistics web page.

Departments: Common Purpose

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department paid to Common Purpose in each of the last five years; for what purpose; and what the outcome of the expenditure was.

Liam Byrne: The amount paid to Common Purpose UK by the Home Office in each of the last five years is detailed in the following table.
	
		
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 Training 4,406 — 7,150 11,909 9,694 
			 Conference fees — — 529 — — 
			 Grants — 36,500 — — — 
			 Total 4,406 36,500 7,679 11,909 9,694 
		
	
	The purpose and outcome of this expenditure was:
	Training expenditure: to raise awareness of leadership issues within the community.
	Grants: to fund a project on the under- representation of refugee and black minority ethnic groups in board level appointments.
	The spend covers the core Home Office, including what is now the Border and Immigration Agency and the National Offender Management Service and Office of Criminal Justice Reform, both of which are now part of the Ministry of Justice.

Immigration

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times she has used discretionary powers to allow an individual  (a) to come to the UK and  (b) to remain in the UK in each of the last five years.

Jacqui Smith: Under the Nationality and Immigration Act 2002, the Secretary of State was given discretionary powers to allow an individual to  (a) come to the UK and  (b) remain in the UK. Officials from the Border and Immigration Agency act on behalf of the Secretary of State to implement decisions based upon the use of these discretionary powers.
	Each asylum and human rights claim is considered on its individual merits in accordance with our obligations under the 1951 UN Refugee Convention and European convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Claimants who meet the definition of a refugee in the 1951 convention are granted asylum. If they do not qualify for asylum but there are other circumstances which make them particularly vulnerable and engage our obligations under the ECHR, they are granted humanitarian protection or discretionary leave. If their application is refused, they have the right of appeal to the independent Asylum and Immigration tribunal. In this way, we ensure that we provide protection of those who need it.
	Information provided in the table relates to grants of exceptional leave to remain, humanitarian protection (HP) and discretionary leave (DL) made on asylum applications received in the UK, 2002 to 2006. Humanitarian protection (HP) and discretionary leave (DL) replaced exceptional leave to remain from 1 April 2003.
	
		
			  Principal applicants UK 
			   Exceptional leave to remain  Grants of humanitarian protection  Grants of discretionary leave 
			 2002 20,135 n/a n/a 
			 2003 3,975 140 3,095 
			 2004 n/a 160 3,835 
			 2005(1) n/a 120 2,675 
			 2006(1) n/a 60 2,260 
			 n/a = not applicable (1) Provisional  Notes: 1. Figures rounded to nearest five. 2. Humanitarian protection (HP) and discretionary leave (DL) replaced exceptional leave to remain from 1 April 2003. 
		
	
	Distinct from discretionary leave and humanitarian protection policy, it is possible to grant someone limited leave to enter outside the rules. However, it is also possible to grant someone limited leave to enter the United Kingdom under the category of "leave outside the rules" There are two circumstances in which "leave outside the rules" will be considered in non-asylum and non-protection cases:
	where someone qualifies under one of the immigration policy concessions; or
	for reasons where there are particularly compelling circumstances.
	Circumstances in which leave outside the rules are granted are rare and are only approved following ratification by a senior caseworker.
	Figures for LOTR can only be obtained by the examination of individual case records at disproportionate cost.

Industrial Health and Safety: Coroners

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 19 June 2007,  Official Report, columns 1713-14W, on industrial health and safety: coroners, what steps she has taken to ensure that health and safety regulations requiring employers to make a suitable and sufficient assessment of risks to health and safety to which employees are exposed while at work have been carried out by those responsible for coroners' officers.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 12 July 2007
	The responsibility for health, safety and welfare policy for police officers and staff transferred from the Home Office to the National Policing Improvement Agency on 1 April 2007. Coroners are appointed and funded by the relevant local authority. Coroner's officers are police staff members employed by local police authorities. The health and safety of coroners and coroner's officers is the responsibility of the relevant local authority, police authority and chief constable. No central data is maintained.

Police: Complaints

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was to police forces in (a) Essex,  (b) Southend and  (c) England and Wales of defending (i) complaints and (ii) litigation taken against the police in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Tony McNulty: The Home Office does not hold this information, these are matters for the forces concerned.

Police: Complaints

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information is collected by her Department about complaints made against police officers; what changes are planned; what recent representations she has received about complaints against police officers; and if she will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The Home Office does not collect this information, which is a matter for the Independent Police Complaints Commission. Any representations about complaints against police officers are also matters for the Independent Police Complaints Commission to whom complainants are referred.

Police: Complaints

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much was spent by  (a) Essex and  (b) Southend police on (i) own force investigations, (ii) supervised investigations, (iii) managed investigations and (iv) independent investigations in each of the last three years for which information is available.

Tony McNulty: The Home Office does not hold this information, these are matters for Essex police.

Police: Manpower

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the ratio of regular police officers to residents is in  (a) Southend,  (b) each borough in Essex and  (c) England and Wales; and what each figure was in (i) 1997, (ii) 2001 and (iii) 2005.

Tony McNulty: Information is available from 2003 in terms of numbers of officers per 100,000 population for each Basic Command Unit in Essex, including Southend, and is contained in the following table.
	
		
			  Total police officers (full-time equivalent) per 100,000 population, as at 31 March 
			   1997  2001  2003  2005  2006 
			  Essex Basic Command Units( 1)  
			 Basildon (2)— (2)— 150 158 160 
			 Braintree (2)— (2)— 111 113 117 
			 Chelmsford (2)— (2)— 94 103 109 
			 Colchester (2)— (2)— 124 126 134 
			 Harlow(3) (2)— (2)— 133 137 149 
			 Rayleigh (2)— (2)— 89 98 102 
			 Southend (2)— (2)— 170 179 192 
			 Tendring (2)— (2)— 122 129 127 
			 Thurrock (2)— (2)— 161 175 183 
			 England and Wales(4) 241 234 254 267 267 
			 (1 )Excluding Stansted airport and central services Basic Command Units, where comparisons with residential population are inappropriate. (2 )Figures not collected centrally prior to 2003. (3) Re-named Essex Western in 2006, without change in boundary. (4) Officers in all 43 police forces, excluding secondments to National Crime Squad, National Criminal Intelligence Service and other central services Figures prior to 2003 exclude officers on career breaks and maternity leave.

Police: Motorways

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice is issued by her Department on the circumstances and manner in which it is safe to set up a rolling police road block on motorways; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: None, this is an operational matter for the police who will decide how best to intervene in particular circumstances. The Association of Chief Police Officers' Guidance on Policing Motorways is available on the ACPO website at
	www.acpo.police.uk.

Speed Limits: Cameras

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of forward facing speed cameras in  (a) reducing accidents and  (b) reducing the number of persons attempting to pervert the course of justice; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The Department for Transport commissioned an independent four year evaluation of the National Safety Camera programme. This included, in its assessment, the success of cameras within the programme in reducing the number of accidents and casualties. The report, a copy of which is in the Library, did not distinguish between front and rear facing cameras. Photographs from front facing cameras may make it easier to identify the driver of a vehicle at the time it was detected committing a speeding offence, thereby making it possible to offer a fixed penalty to or bring a prosecution against that person. Guidance on the use of speed camera photographs is issued by the Association of Chief Police Officers.

Stop and Search: Arrests

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will commission a study of the final outcomes of arrests that follow stop and searches under the Terrorism Act 2000.

Jacqui Smith: All counter terrorism legislation, including section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 (Stop and Search), is kept under constant review. Reviewing the effectiveness of section 44 Stop and Searches, its impact on communities and its role as a deterrent is an important part of this work.
	Lord Carlile, the independent reviewer of counter terrorism legislation, noted that work continues to improve the usage of section 44 powers in his report into the operation of the Terrorism Act 2000 in 2006. He also comments on the usage and effectiveness of Stop and Search and we take his recommendations very seriously.
	National guidance for the police on the use of stop and search was published in July 2006. One of the key aims of the guidance is to set out a framework for the use of section 44 powers to ensure that they are used appropriately by officers on the ground. The guidance clearly states that the powers should only be used for searching for articles which could be used in connection with terrorism and that officers should have regard to the full range of other stop and search powers which may be more appropriate.

Terrorism: Detainees

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many terrorist suspects have been detained for more than 14 days since the implementation of the relevant legislation; and if she will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The maximum period of detention pre-charge was extended to 28 days with effect from 25 July 2006. Statistics compiled from police records show that from 25 July 2006 to 06 July 2007, 10 individuals were held for over 14 days in pre-charge detention. The following table provides a breakdown of this information:
	
		
			  Terrorism act pre-charge detention statistics 
			  Period of detention  No of persons held  Charged  Released w/o charge  Other result 
			 14-15 days 1 1 — — 
			 15-16 days — — — — 
			 16-17 days — — — — 
			 17- 8 days — — — — 
			 18-19 days — — — — 
			 19-20 days 3 3 — — 
			 20-21 days — — — — 
			 21-22 days — — — — 
			 22-23 days — — — — 
			 23-24 days — — — — 
			 24-25 days — — — — 
			 25-26 days — — — — 
			 26-27 days — — — — 
			 27-28 days 6 3 3 —

Delivery Unit

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  whether the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit has conducted a review of financial management in the NHS;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer of 27 June 2007,  Official Report, column 747W, on Delivery Unit, if he will place in the Library a copy of the guidance on conducting joint reviews for use in training staff;
	(3)  what the subject was of all joint reviews carried out by the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit in each financial year since 2001-02.

Andy Burnham: PMDU has not conducted a review of financial management in the NHS, though it has worked with the Treasury and the Department of Health on a joint review of balancing DH funding and expenditure.
	I will ensure a copy of the PMDU's guidance on conducting joint reviews is placed in the Library.
	Since its inception in 2001, PMDU has carried out the following delivery related joint reviews with Departments:
	 Education
	 2002-03
	Key Stage 3
	Performance Management in Schools
	Key Stage 2
	 2003-04
	Bureaucracy in Schools
	Key Stage 3 Follow up
	 2004-05
	Key Stage 4
	Single Conversation in Schools
	Not in Education, Employment or Training PSA Design Review
	School Support Staff Training Review
	 2005-06
	Level 2 attainment at 19
	10 Year Childcare Strategy
	Unauthorised Absence and Persistent Truancy
	 2006-07
	Primary and secondary school standards National Strategy
	Teenage pregnancy
	Pupil attendance
	Pupil behaviour
	Targeted Youth Support
	Building Schools for the Future
	Delivering 14-19 Reform
	Department's Capability Review
	 Health
	 2002-03
	Accident and Emergency 4 hour target
	 2003-04
	Accident and Emergency: Achieving and Sustaining 100 per cent.
	Increasing the Impact of Early Thrombolysis
	6 Month Waiting
	Achieving the 24/48 Hour Primary Care Access Target
	 2004-05
	Choose and Book
	Choice at Six Months
	 2005-06
	Long Term Conditions
	MRSA
	Cancer Waiting Times
	 2006-07
	Non Elective Demand Management
	18 weeks
	Choice of four providers
	Practice-based commissioning
	NHS reform programme
	Childhood obesity
	Childhood and Adolescent Mental Health
	Health Inequalities
	 2007-08
	PCT Capability
	NHS Reform Programme
	Department's Capability Review
	 Immigration
	 2002-03
	Increasing the Removals of Failed Asylum Seekers
	 2004-05
	Follow Up Interim findings
	IND Redocumentation
	Optimising Use of Detention
	Solutions that Improve IND Performance in Ensuring Priority Failed Asylum
	Seeker Cases are Removed
	 2005-06
	Local Enforcement Office Inspections
	Visa Issuing Overseas
	 2006-07
	New Asylum Model Evaluation
	 Crime, Justice and Reoffending
	 2001-02
	Street Robbery
	 2003-04
	Street Robbery Follow Up
	 2004-05
	Improving the Criminal Justice System in London
	Increasing Sanction Detections
	 2005-06
	Improving the Criminal Justice System in London—follow up
	Increasing Sanction Detections—follow up
	Drug Treatment
	Community Penalties
	 2006-07
	Asset Recovery
	Antisocial Behaviour
	Reducing Reoffending
	Citizen Focused Policing
	Respect Action Plans
	High Crime Causing Drug Users
	National Offender Management
	Non-Custodial Sentences
	Department's Capability Review
	 Communities and Local Government
	 2005-06
	Local Authority Development Control
	Evidence Base to Support Housing Delivery
	 2007-08
	Cross Government Delivery of Local Area Agreements
	 Transport
	 2003-04
	Intra-Urban Congestion
	 2004-05
	Rail
	Rail Follow Up
	 Other Projects
	 2006-07
	Neighbourhood Renewal Unit approach to delivering floor targets
	Access to the Arts
	Government Offices
	Sustainable Procurement

Departments: Freedom of Information

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the requests made to his Department under the  (a) Freedom of Information Act (FOI) 2000 and  (b) Environmental Information Regulations in the last six months; and what the (i) FOI case reference number, (ii) request summary, (iii) request outcome and (iv) where appropriate, reason for exemption was in each case.

Angela Eagle: Information relating to Freedom of Information and Environmental Information requests is published on a quarterly basis by the Ministry of Justice. Information for January to March 2007 was published on 25 June 2007,  Official Report, column 10WS, copies of the document are in the libraries of the House. Information for April to June 2007 is due to be published in the autumn. The Treasury website has a section dedicated to FOI releases.

Unemployment: Young People

Boris Johnson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what percentage of 19 to 21-year-olds were  (a) economically inactive and not in full-time education and  (b) unemployed in each year since 1997, broken down by local education authority.

Angela Eagle: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.

Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  whether her Department has had discussions with the Community Development Foundation on the appropriateness of religious groups receiving grants from the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund where allegations of cultish behaviour have been made against them;
	(2)  what representations her Department has received on cultish behaviour in the  (a) Friends of the Western Buddhist Order,  (b) New Kudampa Tradition and  (c) Soka Gakkai International.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department has received correspondence from a member of the public regarding the alleged cultish behaviour of the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order, New Kadarnpa Tradition and Soka Gakkai International. No other representation has been received by the Department. Communities and Local Government has commissioned the Community Development Foundation to administer the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund. Officials made the Community Development Foundation aware of the existence of the allegations. The Department considered whether these allegations had any relevance when set against the Fund's stringent criteria and guidelines. The decision was made that the criteria was satisfied and the award of funding was made.

Fire Services

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which fire services provide no wholetime fire cover at night across their entire service area.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 11 July 2007
	 The information requested is not held centrally.

Floods: Milton Keynes

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether  (a) Milton Keynes Council and  (b) Stoke Goldington Parish Council will be eligible following the severe flooding in Stoke Goldington, Milton Keynes to apply for part of the £14 million emergency fund for flooded communities recently announced by the Prime Minister.

John Healey: holding answer 12 July 2007
	 The £14 million package of aid announced by the Prime Minister comprises of three elements.
	Firstly, there is a £10 million Flood Recovery Grant Scheme administered by my Department to support local authorities in their work within communities affected by the flooding, and in particular to enable them to help those in greatest and most immediate need get back on their feet. This is funding for lower-tier local authorities, so Stoke Goldington Parish Council is not eligible.
	I announced on 13 July a series of initial payments to local authorities under this scheme, based on the information available to me at the time about the number of households affected by flooding and on my judgment as how to best share the available funding to the best benefit of affected communities. Milton Keynes was considered for, but has not received, an initial payment. We will be making allocations in due course of the remaining funding, and are encouraging all affected local authorities to work closely with their Government Office on assessing the impact of the recent flooding. I will consider the case for payments to all eligible councils on the basis of the information I have at that time.
	Secondly, there is £3 million from the Department for Transport to assist emergency capital works needed to restore the functionality of the highway network. This is for highways authorities, which means that Milton Keynes can apply but Stoke Goldington cannot. Applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis, depending on the nature and urgency of the repairs, and the availability of resources.
	Finally, there is £1 million which can be drawn on as contingency reserve (by the Department for Work and Pensions for use by Jobcentre Plus to support additional demand for Social Fund Community Care Grants. This is not funding for local authorities but for individuals, who should apply direct to Jobcentre Plus in the usual way.

Housing: Essex

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many vulnerable households lived in non-decent homes in Essex in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many vulnerable households in non-decent homes there are in Essex.

Iain Wright: Information on the number of vulnerable households living in non decent homes in each local authority district is not available centrally. A Decent Home: Definition and guidance for implementation (June 2006-Update) advises local authorities, as part of their strategic management of housing in their area, to carry out periodic surveys to, amongst other things, assess the number of vulnerable households living in non decent homes who own or privately rent their accommodation. Individual local authorities are best placed to advise on their latest assessment. The guidance referred to above is available on the Communities and Local Government website at:
	www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=1152190

Housing: Multiple Occupation

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the number of domestic residential properties in multiple occupation as a percentage of total number of individual properties in each local authority area.

Iain Wright: A table detailing the latest estimates of the number of all houses in multiple-occupation (HMOs) as a percentage of the total number of dwellings in each local authority area has been placed in the Library of the House. The data were provided by local authorities to the Department as part of their Annual Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix.

Community Policing

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what progress has been made on community policing in Northern Ireland.

Paul Goggins: My Department continues to work closely with PSNI in relation to the development of community policing. In September 2006, PSNI set up a dedicated branch to develop its approach to policing with the community. A review- of neighbourhood policing was also undertaken, drawing on best practice from other police services.
	In his final report of 19 May 2007, the Oversight Commissioner for Police Reform indicated that five of the eight recommendations on policing with the community were complete and that substantial progress had been made on the remaining three.
	On 18 June 2007 the chief constable and his senior staff approved the corporate framework for neighbourhood policing. The 25 recommendations contained therein will now begin to be implemented throughout all police districts. Workshops to inform officers about the 25 recommendations and the way ahead are currently being held within the eight police districts and will be completed by 27 July 2007.
	A Corporate Implementation Team (whose role it will be to deliver the recommendations) has been selected. A project plan is being prepared, however all eight districts are already implementing those recommendations that can be implemented now.

Departments: Official Hospitality

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 6 June 2007,  Official Report, column 515W, on Departments: official hospitality, if he will provide a breakdown by main budget heading of his Department's  (a) agencies and  (b) NDPBs expenditure on official hospitality for each of the last three years.

Paul Goggins: The following table indicates how much the Northern Ireland Office's Agencies and executive NDPBs spent on official hospitality for each of the last three years:
	
		
			  £ 
			   (a) Hospitality spend—agencie s  (b) Hospitality spend—executive NDPB s 
			 2004-05 44,807 122,313 
			 2005-06 41,191 141,088 
			 2006-07 77,555 228,380

Departments: Departmental Records

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many files  (a) Capita and  (b) other private contractors are holding for his Department and its agency; what the cost is of this service; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: The number of files Capita are holding for the Department for Work and Pensions and its agencies at July 2007 is approximately 52.7 million. No files are held by other private contractors.
	The record storage contract with the Department was competitively let to Capita in June 2004. Capita is the only approved file store service provider to the Department and its agencies. It is now the principal method of storing benefit claims, once discharged from the processing office, and other paper records and registered files. The contract with Capita is until June 2010 with an option to extend up to June 2014. The current annual cost of this service is about £15.5 million. Since 2004 the contract has realised value for money savings, both in service efficiencies and reduced estates costs, in the region of £16.5 million.

Departments: Pay

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employees in his Department and its agencies are paid more than £100,000 per annum.

Anne McGuire: There are currently 62 DWP employees paid more than £100,000 per annum, including base pay and non consolidated, non pensionable bonuses. This represents less than 0.1 per cent of the Department's employees.

Departments: Private Finance Initiative

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the total cost is of all private finance initiative projects for which his Department has responsibility completed since 1997; and what the projected cost is of such projects commissioned or under way.

Anne McGuire: The Department has only one PFI route to obtain estates services under the private sector resource initiative for the management of the estate (PRIME) contract.
	PRIME is a 20 year PFI partnership deal, competitively let to Trillium (now Land Securities Trillium) on 1 April 1998 by the then Department of Social Security and expanded in 2003 to cover the former Employment Service estate. The estimated NPV for the original contract was £2.008 billion. The estimated NPV for the expansion was £1.2 billion.
	The Department currently has no plans to use PFI in new areas, but the option will be considered for future services, except IS/IT which under Government policy are not considered suitable for PFI.
	A list of all signed PFI deals with unitary charges is available at:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/documents/public_private_partnerships/ppp_pfi_stats.cfm

Departments: Public Transport

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what incentives he has considered to encourage staff in his Department to use public transport.

Anne McGuire: The main incentive the Department offers are interest-free loans for season tickets for travel to work. Use of public transport is encouraged by departmental policies including limited car parking, flexible working, using public transport during the course of travel and making use of travel websites and information services, such as Transport Direct. Staff are also informed about local transport initiatives and promotions. Where the location or nature of the work makes public transport use impractical for staff, car sharing is encouraged.

Departments: Redundancy

Alan Reid: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employees of his Department were made compulsorily redundant in each year since it was established.

Anne McGuire: holding answer 12 July 2007
	The Department for Work and Pensions was established in June 2001, bringing together the former Department of Social Security and Employment Service.
	As part of its Efficiency Programme, the Department has run a number of staff early release schemes in each year since its formation. All but two early releases under these schemes have been on a voluntary basis. One member of staff was made compulsorily redundant in December 2005, one member of staff was made compulsorily redundant in May 2007.

Departments: Redundancy

Alan Reid: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employees in each service or agency of his Department were made compulsorily redundant in each year since it was established.

Anne McGuire: The Department for Work and Pensions was established in June 2001, bringing together the former Department of Social Security and Employment Service.
	As part of its Efficiency Programme, the Department has run a number of staff early release schemes in each year since its formation. All but two early releases under these schemes have been on a voluntary basis. One member of staff from Jobcentre Plus was made compulsorily redundant in December 2005, one member of staff from the Child Support Agency was made compulsorily redundant in May 2007.

Building Schools for the Future Programme: Private Finance Initiative

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the Answer of 25th June 2007, Official Report, column 537W, on the Building Schools for the Future programme: private finance initiative (PFI), how much his Department has allocated in PFI credits to each Building Schools for the Future project which has been agreed; and how much the local authority contributed towards the cost of each project.

Jim Knight: Initial allocations of PFI credits to support projects in Building Schools for the Future.
	These allocations may change as the project scopes are finalised. Full information on how much local authorities' contributions will be are not held by the Department.

Building Schools for the Future Programme: Private Finance Initiative

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many schools are in the process of being  (a) built and  (b) refurbished under the Building Schools for the Future programme; and how many in each category are being built or refurbished under the private finance initiative;
	(2)  how many schools have been  (a) built and  (b) refurbished under the (i) Academies and (ii) Building Schools for the Future programme; and how many in each category were built or refurbished under the private finance initiative.

Jim Knight: Building Schools for the Future (BSF) is a core part of the Department's capital strategy, providing a new approach to capital investment in secondary schools. BSF aims to create world-class, 21st-century schools—environments which will inspire learning for decades to come and provide exceptional assets for the whole community. Subject to future public spending decisions, the intention is to achieve this aim for every secondary school pupil within 15 waves from 2005-06 onwards.
	To date, four BSF schools have been completed. Of these, three are newly built and one refurbished. None were procured under PFI arrangements.
	There are currently 51 BSF schools in construction. Of these, 30 are new build projects and 21 are refurbishment projects. Of the 30 new build schools, 23 are being procured as part of PFI schemes.
	There are 27 academies open where construction work has been completed. Of these, 22 are predominantly new build projects and five are predominantly refurbishment projects. None were procured under PFI arrangements.

Departments: Flags

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what guidance he has given to schools on the flying of the Union flag on a daily basis; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: No guidance has been issued to schools on this issue. Schools are free to fly the Union flag on any day they choose, but it is for individual schools whether to do so or not.

Departments: Publications

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will list the departmental circulars, guidance notes and other communications sent by his Department and its predecessors to  (a) primary school head teachers and governors and  (b) secondary school head teachers and governors since 1 April 2004, indicating in each case the (i) purpose and (ii) contents of the communications; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Department sends information automatically to schools in England only in exceptional cases having stopped regular paper mailings in December 2004.
	Discussions with head teachers and detailed research showed that schools wanted to be able to choose the printed publications they needed, when they needed them, and to be able to order multiple copies.
	Instead, the Department has successfully introduced an online ordering service where schools are able to either download or order paper based copies of publications including guidance. A regular fortnightly email is sent to schools to inform them of new publications. In addition, "Spectrum" provides schools, head teachers and chairs of governors with a summary of all the latest resources, publications, guidance and regulations. It is available online and can also be requested in paper copy.
	Copies of "Teachers Magazine" are distributed to all schools six times each year. The "Governors Newsletter" is available on subscription only. Both products offer news and information, and point readers to further details available online or in other publications.
	I do not intend to make a statement. An annual report is presented to Parliament each year, listing the documents sent from the Department and its agencies to all schools.

Departments: Publications

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will list the data releases planned to be made by his Department over the next 12 months; what the expected date is of each; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The readily available information relates to the release of National Statistics publications. No record is centrally held of all data releases. The process for setting dates for National Statistics publications runs on a six-monthly cycle with dates being set in March and September for the following six months (firm commitments) and the six months after that (expected publications). In the run-up to each separate month, exact dates are set for publications in that month. The date setting process is managed by the Department's Head of Profession for Statistics and the published Compliance Statement can be found at:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/nat-stats.shtml
	The following table lists the statistical first release (SFRs) and statistical bulletins that will be issued from now through to September 2007. The exact dates for August and September have not been set, other than for the attainment publications which have fixed dates agreed in advance. The list replicates the original pre-announced schedule of publications published in March 2007 which can be found at:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000720/index.shtml
	and as such contains publications which have now transferred to the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS).
	
		
			Publication 
			 24 July 2007 SFR: Children accommodated in secure children's homes, year ending 31 March 2007 England and Wales 
			 August 2007 SFR: National curriculum assessments at key stage 2 in England, 2007 (provisional). This SFR will be published on the first Tuesday in August (7 August 2007) 
			  SFR: National curriculum assessments at key stage 3 in England, 2007 (provisional). This SFR will be published on the second Tuesday in August (14 August 2007) 
			  SFR: National curriculum assessments at key stage 1 in England, 2007. This SFR will be published on the last Thursday in August (30 August 2007) 
			  Bulletin: School destinations of secondary school pupils resident in London boroughs, 2007 (internet only). 
			 September 2007 SFR: Schools and pupils in England: January 2007 (final) 
			  SFR: School work force in England (including pupil: teacher ratios and pupil: adult ratios), January 2007 (revised) 
			  SFR: Referrals, assessments and children and young people who are the subjects of child protection plans: year ending 31 March 2007 
			  SFR: Children looked after in England (including adoptions and care leavers) year ending 31 March 2007 
			  Volume: Higher education statistics for the UK: 2005-06(1) 
			 (1) Prepared and published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency, in consultation with DIUS statisticians. 
		
	
	The following statistical first releases (SFRs), statistical bulletins and statistical volumes are provisionally scheduled to appear in the following six months from October 2007 to March 2008.
	
		
			Publication 
			 October 2007 SFR: GCSE and equivalent results in England, 2006-07 (provisional). This SFR will be published on the third Thursday in October (18 October 2007) 
			  SFR: GCE/VCE A/AS and equivalent examination results in England, 2006-07 (provisional). This SFR will be published on the third Thursday in October (18 October 2007) 
			  SFR: Foundation stage profile 2007: national results (provisional) 
			  SFR: Neighbourhood statistics—announcement of the release of small area national curriculum assessment, GCSE and equivalent attainment and post-16 attainment by pupil characteristics in England, 2005-06 
			 November 2007 SFR: Private fostering arrangements in England, year ending 31 March 2007 
			  SFR: Youth cohort study: the activities and experiences of 19 year olds: England and Wales 2007 
			  SFR: National curriculum assessment, GCSE and equivalent attainment and post-16 attainment by pupil characteristics in England 2006-07 (provisional) 
			  SFR: Student support for higher education in England, academic year 2007-08 (provisional)(2) 
			  Volume: Education and training statistics for the United Kingdom: 2007 (internet only) 
			 December 2007 SFR: Further education, work-based learning and adult and community learning-learner numbers in England: 2006-07(3) 
			  SFR: National curriculum assessments at key stage 2 and key stage 1 to key stage 2 value added measures in England 2006-07 (revised) 
			 January 2008 SFR: GCE/VCE A/AS and equivalent examination results in England, 2006-07 (revised) 
			  SFR: GCSE and equivalent results and associated value added measures in England, 2006-07 (revised) 
			  SFR: Higher education enrolments and qualifications obtained at higher education institutions in the UK in the academic year 2006-07(1) 
			  SFR: Foundation stage profile 2007 national results (final) 
			 February 2008 SFR: Level 2 and 3 attainment by young people in England measured using matched administrative data: attainment by age 19 in 2007 ( provisional) 
			  SFR: Vocational qualifications in the UK: 2006-07 
			  SFR: Pupil absence in schools in England, 2006-07 
			  SFR: National curriculum assessments at key stage 3 and key stage 2 to key stage 3 value added for young people in England, 2006/-07 (revised) 
			  SFR The level of highest qualification held by adults: England 2007 
			 March 2008 SFR: Further education, work-based learning and personal and community development learning—learner numbers in England on 1 October 2007(3) 
			  SFR: Participation rates in higher education: academic years 1999-2000 to 2006-07 (provisional) 
			  Volume: Children looked after by local authorities year ending 31 March 2007 (internet only) 
			 (2) Prepared and published by Student Loans Company, in consultation with DIUS statisticians. (3) Prepared and published by the Learning Skills Council in consultation with DCSF and DIUS statisticians.

Faith Schools: Admissions

Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  if he will bring forward measures to abolish the practice of maintained faith schools of giving priority to children on the grounds of religious belief and practice in admissions criteria; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what the legal basis is for maintained schools to give priority in their admissions arrangements and criteria to children on the grounds of religious belief and practice.

Jim Knight: holding answer 11 July 2007
	We have no plans to prevent faith schools that are oversubscribed giving priority in admissions to children of their faith. Faith schools play an important role in ensuring diversity of provision and there is a high demand for faith based education from parents.
	It is unlawful under section 49 of the Equality Act 2006 for a school to discriminate against a child on the grounds of his religion or belief in the terms on which it offers to admit him or by refusing to accept an application for a place. However, schools designated as having a religious character under section 69 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 are exempt from this prohibition by virtue of section 50 of the Equality Act 2006 and may, therefore, give priority, when oversubscribed, to children on the basis that they are members of or practise their faith.

Financial Services: Curriculum

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether financial education in schools will be delivered through personal, social and health education; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: Opportunities for the teaching and learning of financial capability occur across the curriculum. It is for schools to decide how to organise their provision but commonly it is delivered through Personal Social and Health Education (PSHE) or across subject areas including Maths, Citizenship, Business Studies and Enterprise Education. My Department has published curriculum guidance for all key stages to help teachers identify where financial capability sits within the curriculum and the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority has published units of work to help teachers with lesson planning and assessment of pupil progress.
	The revised curriculum for secondary schools, launched last week, includes a new dedicated programme of study for "Economic Well Being and Financial Capability" as part of a revised Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education. The new curriculum will begin teaching from September 2008 and will add a new focus on financial education in schools. We are revising curriculum guidance for schools in light of these changes and will publish the updated guidance in due course.

Further Education: Departmental Responsibilities

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which aspects of further education in England are the responsibility of his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Department will take on responsibility for policy and funding for the education of children and young people up to age 19 from the Department for Education and Skills. Sponsorship of the FE service will sit with the new Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills. Both Departments will work closely together to ensure strategic objectives and policy pre and post 19 are coherent and consistent.

Partnerships for Schools: City Academies

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which academies that  (a) have opened have been and  (b) are under development will be delivered through Partnerships for Schools.

Jim Knight: 47 Academies are now open, of these 27 have completed construction, none of these buildings were delivered/are being delivered by Partnerships for Schools (PfS). We expect that all Academies which have yet to enter into development will be delivered by PfS. There are currently 100 academies in development, 55 of these buildings are being delivered through PfS and these are:
	Birmingham, an Academy to replace Heartlands
	Birmingham, a new Academy in the East
	Birmingham, an Academy to replace Shenley Court
	Bolton, an Academy to replace Withins
	The Stadium Academy, Brent
	Palmer Academy, Brighton
	Oasis Academy, Bristol
	The Bristol Brunei Academy, Bristol
	Colston's Girls' Academy, Bristol
	Swanswell, Coventry
	Cumbria, an Academy to replace Ehenside
	Cumbria, an Academy to replace North Cumbria
	Eastbourne Church of England Academy, Darlington
	Derbyshire, an Academy to replace Shirebrook
	Essex, an Academy in East Basildon
	Essex, a second Academy in East Basildon
	Hackney Skinners Academy
	Hammersmith and Fulham Academy
	Herefordshire, an Academy to replace Wyebridge
	Isle of Sheppey, Kent
	Kent, an Academy to replace Cornwallis
	Kent, an Academy to replace Oldborough
	Lancashire, an Academy to replace Accrington Moorhead
	Lincolnshire, an Academy to replace Priory, Joseph Rushton, City of Lincoln
	Lincolnshire, a second Academy to replace Priory, Joseph Rushton, City of Lincoln
	Barnfield West Academy, Luton
	Barnfield South Academy, Luton
	Manchester Digital Communications Academy
	Manchester Construction and the Built Environment Academy
	Manchester Creative Media Academy
	Manchester Finance and Professional Service Academy
	Manchester Business Enterprise Academy
	Manchester Health Academy
	Milton Keynes, an Academy to replace Sir Frank Markham
	The Open Academy, Norfolk
	Havelock Academy, North East Lincolnshire
	North Lincolnshire, an Academy to replace High Ridge
	Hirst Academy, Northumberland
	Nottingham Bulwell Academy
	The Samworth University Academy, Nottingham
	The Samworth Church Academy, Nottinghamshire
	The Oxford Academy
	St Anne's Academy, Rochdale
	Salford, an Academy to replace Hope High
	Shireland Collegiate Academy, Sandwell
	George Salter Collegiate Academy, Sandwell
	Walworth Academy, Southwark
	St Michael's and All Angels CofE, Southwark
	St Helens, an Academy to replace St Aelred's
	Pennywell/Quarry View Academy, Sunderland
	Castle view Academy, Sunderland
	Red House Academy, Sunderland
	New Charter Academy, Tameside
	Telford and Wrekin, an Academy to replace Abraham Darby
	Wellesley Academy, Wiltshire

Playing Fields: Sales

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what area of school playing fields in  (a) England,  (b) the North West and  (c) Ribble Valley have been sold in the last 10 years.

Jim Knight: Since October 1998 the Secretary of State has approved 187 applications that involve the sale of an area of land capable of forming a sports pitch of at least 0.2 hectares at schools in England. Of these 89 were in respect of closed schools. The number of these at schools in the north-west is 34 (16 of these at closed schools). There have not been any applications approved that involve the sale of a sports pitch at a school in Ribble Valley. Prior to October 1998 there was no regulation of the sale of school playing fields at local authority schools.
	Data on school playing fields were supplied to the Department by local authorities in 2001 and 2003. However, because the data were incomplete, it is not possible to assess accurately the number and area of school playing fields.

Pupils: Questionnaires

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the Government's policy is on asking 10-year-olds about drink and drugs in official surveys.

Jim Knight: The Government are committed to reducing substance misuse related harm among young people. We know that some young people begin to experiment with smoking, alcohol and drugs at an early age. We also know that, the earlier they start to use drugs and alcohol frequently, the more likelihood there is of long term harm. Understanding the extent of young people's use of drugs and alcohol at a local level is key to identifying problems early and providing effective prevention.
	The Tellus survey conducted by Ofsted asks year 6 (age 10) primary school pupils about smoking and alcohol use, but does not ask about illicit drug use until pupils are in secondary school.

Schools: Teaching Methods

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will make a statement on the implementation of personalised learning in schools.

Jim Knight: The Secretary of State announced new plans on Tuesday 10 July to encourage a personalised approach to teaching and learning in schools, with a focus on ensuring that every child has the chance to make the most of their talents and fulfil their potential.
	We will be providing £150 million for Assessment for Learning training over the next three years to help teachers better track their pupils' progress and personalise their learning to stretch gifted children and help underachieving children catch up. Assessment for learning plays a critical role in helping teachers monitor the progress of every pupil against their own individual expectations and triggering swift intervention for those pupils whose progress slows.
	There will be a major review of maths teaching in primary schools which will seek to define the most effective methods of teaching and learning maths to develop pupils' deeper understanding; and this will inform the design of Every Child Counts, a new intervention programme for young children who are struggling with numeracy.
	The Secretary of State has also announced a £265 million extended schools subsidy over the next three years to ensure that children from disadvantaged backgrounds benefit from extra out-of-hours tuition and after-school clubs in sport, music and drama.
	Personalised learning means taking a highly structured approach to pupils' progress in the round, encouraging pupils to take ownership of their own learning, and engaging with their parents as partners. These new programmes build on the work already under way, such as the Making Good Progress Pilots and supporting the well-being of children and young people through the roll-out Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL) programme.

Secondary Education: Carlisle

Eric Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent discussions officials in his Department have had with Cumbria county council on secondary education provision in Carlisle; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: Officials from across the DCSF have met with officers from Cumbria county council on a number of occasions to discuss the planned city wide secondary school reorganisation in Carlisle. There have been ongoing discussions relating to the capital investment in Carlisle in response to the January 2005 floods and how it will be used to raise standards in education across the city. This includes working with the council on the academy proposal to replace St. Aidan's school and about finding sponsorship for a possible second academy in Carlisle, based on the Morton school which is currently in special measures.

Secondary Education: Class Sizes

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of secondary school pupils were in classes with over  (a) 30 pupils,  (b) 25 pupils and  (c) 20 pupils in each year from 1990-91 to 2007-08.

Jim Knight: The available information is contained in the following table. Data on classes of over 25 and 20 pupils are not readily available. The available relevant data has been italicised. Note that these figures do not include academies.
	
		
			  Maintained secondary schools: classes as taught( 1,2) —Position in January each year: 2003 to 2007( 3) , England 
			   2003  2004  2005  2006  2007( 3) 
			  Secondary schools  
			 Average class size 21.9 21.8 21.7 21.5 21.3 
			 Total number of classes 142,190 143,650 143,500 144,330 144,420 
			  Percentage of classes with  
			 1 to 30 pupils 92.0 91.8 92.3 92.4 92.7 
			 31 to 35 pupils 7.9 8.0 7.6 7.4 7.1 
			 36 or more pupils 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.2 
			 Total number of pupils 3,110,570 3,131,910 3,108,020 3,099,160 3,069,470 
			   
			  Percentage of pupils in classes with  
			 1 to 30 pupils 88.3 88.0 88.6 88.7 89.0 
			  31 to 35 pupils  11.5  11.7  11.2  11.0  10.7 
			  36 or more pupils  0.2  0.2  0.3  0.3  0.3 
			 (1 )One teacher classes as taught during a single selected period in each school on the day of the census in January.  (2) Includes middle schools as deemed.  (3) Provisional. Source: School Census 
		
	
	The contents of this table were published as part of the recent Statistical First Release on pupil characteristics which can be found at:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000726/index.shtml

Secondary Education: Class Sizes

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what his most recent estimate is of the pupil-teacher ratios in secondary schools in the  (a) state and  (b) private sector; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what the pupil-to-teacher ratio was in English  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools in (i) 2006 and (ii) 2007.

Jim Knight: In January 2007 the pupil:teacher ratio was 21.8 in English local authority maintained primary schools and 16.5 in secondary schools. These figures are the latest available and are provisional. The equivalent figures for 2006 are 22.0 and 16.6 respectively. This information is from the Department of Children, Schools and Families School Census.
	No estimate has been made of pupil:teacher ratios in private sector secondary schools.

Specialist Schools: Standards

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many specialist schools there were in each year from 1997 to 2007; what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of specialist schools in raising performance; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The number of specialist schools in each year from 1997 to 2007 is as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			 1997 221 
			 1998 304 
			 1999 377 
			 2000 513 
			 2001 664 
			 2002 972 
			 2003 1,435 
			 2004 1,945 
			 2005 2,376 
			 2006 2,607 
			 2007 2,807 
		
	
	Research evidence on the impact of the specialist school programme (SSP) to date is positive both in terms of the impact on attainment and in terms of the wider reported benefits on school ethos, teaching and learning and pupil motivation. There have been several independent assessments of the programmes, for example:
	London School of Economics (2000);
	OFSTED evaluations of the progress of Specialist Schools 2001 and 2005;
	"A Study of the Specialist Schools Programme", Institute of Education, University of Warwick 2004.
	The evidence shows that specialist schools outperform non-specialist schools. On overall school improvement and value added measures, specialist schools' results have delivered higher standards for children since their inception.
	Specialist schools are the future of secondary education in England. We want every secondary school that meets the criteria to attain specialist status. We are well on track to meet our target of 95 per cent. of eligible secondary schools to be specialist by 2008. Currently over 2.8 millions students attend specialist schools.
	All specialist schools must work with partner schools and the wider community and we are keen to exploit the strengths of our strongest schools to lead system wide reform. There are over 550 high performing specialist schools which have taken on additional options extending their partnership working with other schools. We have also a very small scale pilot testing exploring specialism in primary schools.

Teachers: Assessments

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  to which key stage level in the national curriculum each of the qualified teacher status skills tests is roughly equivalent;
	(2)  how many times the qualified teacher status skills tests were  (a) sat and  (b) passed in each financial year since they were introduced, broken down by type of test;
	(3)  what the total cost of administering the skills tests was in each financial year since the qualified teacher status skills tests were introduced.

Jim Knight: The qualified teacher status (QTS) skills tests equate to key stage 4 of the national curriculum.
	The Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) holds data on the number of QTS skills tests attempted by teacher trainees who successfully passed the tests, but not on those who have not successfully passed the tests. The available data on numbers of tests attempted is collected on an academic, rather than financial year, basis. The following table shows for each of the academic years 2000/01 to 2005/06 and for each test, the number of teacher trainees that successfully passed that test in that year, the mean number of attempts taken and, therefore, the total number of tests attempted by them. The table also shows for each year and for each test, the number of teacher trainees who either did not attempt the test or who did not pass the test during that period.
	The total cost to the TDA for administering the skill tests in each financial year since their introduction in 1999 is as follows:
	
		
			  Financial year  Total cost for year (£) 
			 1999-2000 1,803,000 
			 2000-01 5,245,000 
			 2001-02 5,972,000 
			 2002-03 4,132,000 
			 2003-04 5,349,000 
			 2004-05 4,722,000 
			 2005-06 4,262,000 
			 2006-07 4,024,000 
			 2007-08 (forecast) 3,654,000 
			 Total costs 39,163,000 
		
	
	
		
			   2000/01  2001/02  2002/03  2003/04  2004/05  2005/06 
			  Numeracy   
			 Passed 22,949 25,984 29,088 31,306 33,247 34,126 
			 Mean number of attempts required to pass 1.28 1.28 1.31 1.36 1.49 1.49 
			 Approximate number of tests sat by those who passed 29,375 33,260 38,105 42,576 49,538 50,848 
			
			  Literacy   
			 Passed 23,227 26,326 29,616 32,723 33,902 34,150 
			 Mean number of attempts required to pass 1.14 1.25 1.24 1.23 1.39 1.4 
			 Approximate number of tests sat by those who passed 26,479 32,908 36,724 40,249 47,124 47,810 
			
			 ICT   
			 Passed n/a 25,814 29,172 32,961 33,328 33,247 
			 Mean number of attempts required to pass n/a 1.11 1.31 1.17 1.38 1.14 
			 Approximate number of tests sat by those who passed n/a 28,654 38,215 38,564 45,993 37,902 
			
			  Numeracy   
			 Approximate number of trainees who did not pass the tests 459 468 582 2,066 702 1,106 
			
			  Literacy   
			 Approximate number of trainees who did not pass the tests 232 290 296 1,080 488 536 
			
			  ICT   
			 Approximate number of trainees who did not pass the tests n/a 232 496 659 587 702

Departments: Disciplinary Proceedings

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many people in his Department have been  (a) disciplined and  (b) dismissed for (i) inappropriate use of the internet while at work and (ii) using work telephones to access premium rate telephone numbers in the last 12 months.

Shahid Malik: DFID's Discipline and Dismissal Procedures are fully compliant with UK legislation and apply to home civil servants working in both the UK and overseas. The same procedures apply to our locally appointed staff, who work in our network of overseas offices, unless local law dictates otherwise.
	DFID disciplined fewer than five staff for inappropriate use of the internet while at work in the last 12 months. Due to the small numbers involved, a breakdown by type of offence, employment status and outcome is not made public on the grounds of confidentiality. None of these staff were dismissed.
	DFID did not discipline or dismiss any staff for using work telephones to access premium rate numbers in the last 12 months.
	The arrangements for staff accessing the internet, and the use of office telephones, are described in our response to a similar question raised on 1 May 2006, which covered the preceding five year period.

Departments: Public Transport

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what incentives he has considered to encourage staff in his Department to use public transport.

Shahid Malik: DFID provides interest free-loans to staff for the purchase of travel season tickets. This is the only direct incentive we provide to staff, although we also publicise public transport alternatives, particularly in London where we do not have any car parking for staff. We also engage with local authorities on the provision of public transport around our East Kilbride office, and monitor and report on trends in our Green Transport Plans.

Departments: Publicity

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the cost effectiveness of advertising commissioned  (a) by his Department and  (b) in relation to policy areas for which it is now responsible in the last 12 months.

Maria Eagle: Since 9 May when my department was created we have commissioned advertising for the Camberwell Green Magistrates Court Payback scheme, magistrates recruitment; recruitment to judicial and executive posts; and recruitment to civil service posts within the department.
	Between 6 July 2006 and 9 May 2007, the Department for Constitutional Affairs commissioned advertising to publicise the Operation Payback initiative targeting fine defaulters, and recruitment advertising for magistrates, for judicial office and for executive posts within the civil service.
	Response to the Camberwell Community Payback advertisement was monitored and evaluated by the operational team at Camberwell court. The advert achieved the desired response through extensive positive media coverage and this is still ongoing.
	On magistrates recruitment, the numbers recruited in 2006-07 exceeded the target for the year. All other advertising has been for recruitment which is evaluated by the number and calibre of applicants successfully filling vacancies.
	Each judicial selection exercise has a specifically tailored marketing plan to ensure use of the most appropriate advertising channels which to date has achieved higher numbers and better quality of applicants.
	In respect of recruitment to the Senior Civil Service, my department is working with Cabinet Office and a number of other departments to explore how we can adapt and improve recruitment and achieve cost savings in line with best practice in the market place. This includes a migration to on-line advertising with all vacancies being advertised on the Civil Service Recruitment Gateway and using generic adverts with signposting to enable the Ministry to pool resources and advertise with other departments in a single advert to reduce use of newspaper space.

Drugs: Ribble Valley

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people were convicted for drugs-related offences committed in Ribble Valley constituency in each of the last 10 years.

Maria Eagle: Data on court proceedings held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform is not broken down by constituency area however, information on the number of persons convicted of drug offences and motoring offences related specifically to drugs, in courts in the Ribble Valley area for the years 1996-2005 are available, and are provided in the table.
	It is not possible to identify the number of other offences, for example murders, assaults or robberies which involved defendants who were taking illegal drugs as the court proceedings database does not hold specific information on offences beyond descriptions provided by the statutes under which prosecutions are brought. These detailed circumstances are held only on court files, and are not reported to the Office For Criminal Justice Reform. Information for 2006 will be available in the autumn.
	
		
			  Number of persons found guilty of drug offences and other selected offences involving drugs as a result of proceedings brought in courts in the Ribble Valley area, 1996-2005( 1,2) 
			   Drug offences( 1) 
			  Local criminal justice area  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 South Ribble 71 126 129 103 67 60 64 55 37 39 
			 Blackburn, Darwen and Ribble Valley 149 226 273 255 253 209 274 250 187 189 
			 (1) These data are on the principal offence basis. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the police forces and courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 
		
	
	
		
			  Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle whil e  unfit through drink or drugs (impairment)—drugs  Road Traffic Act 1988 S.4(1)( 1) 
			  Local  c riminal justice area  2004  2005 
			 South Ribble 4 1 
			 Blackburn, Darwen and Ribble Valley 1 3 
			 (1) Offences of Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle and being in charge of a mechanically propelled vehicle while unfit to drive through drink or drugs (impairment) were split in 2004 to provide separate offences for drink and drugs. 
		
	
	
		
			  Being in charge of a mechanically propelled vehicle while unfit to drive through drink or drugs (impairment)—drugs  Road Traffic Act 1988 S.4(2)( 1) 
			  Local  c riminal justice area  2004  2005 
			 South Ribble — — 
			 Blackburn. Darwen and Ribble Valley — 1 
			 (1) Offences of Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle and being in charge of a mechanically propelled vehicle while unfit to drive through drink or drugs (impairment) were split in 2004 to provide separate offences for drink and drugs.

Family Courts

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications there were to family courts in the last financial year.

Bridget Prentice: The table shows the number of applications made in the family courts in England and Wales in 2006-07, broken down by broad application type.
	The table presents aggregated figures covering all jurisdictions—the High Court, County Courts and Family Proceedings Courts.
	All underlying data relate to the 2006-07 financial year, except for Public and Private Law Children Act applications in the Family Proceedings Courts, for which 2006 calendar year has been used as this is the most recent 12-month period for which complete data is available.
	These figures exclude cases which were reported as having been transferred between courts.
	
		
			  Number of applications made to the family courts in England and Wales, 2006-07 
			   Total 
			 Public Law Children Act 20,709 
			 Private Law Children Act 103,088 
			 Adoption 5,885 
			 Divorce and Separation 149,298 
			 Ancillary Relief 72,191 
			 Domestic Violence 26,308 
			 Total 377,479

Prisoners Release

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners who were released under the End of Custody Licence on 29 June 2007 and 2 July 2007 had previously been refused parole or release on home detention curfew.

David Hanson: Parole applies to prisoners serving sentences of four years or more. Prisoners are eligible for consideration for End of Custody Licence if they have been sentenced to less than four years. No prisoner released under End of Custody Licence would have previously been refused parole during their current sentence.
	Of the 1,390 prisoners release under End of Custody Licence on 29 June 2007 and 2 July 2007, 951 have previously been refused release on Home Detention Curfew.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisoners Release

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which categories of prisoner are eligible for early release from prison; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The End of Custody Licence was announced by the then Lord Chancellor on 19 June 2007 and came into use on the 29 June for eligible prisoners serving sentences of four weeks or more but less than four years.
	Eligible prisoners are released a maximum of 18 days before their normal, automatic release date subject to spending a minimum of seven days in custody following sentence.
	The suitability of each prisoner for release under End of Custody Licence (ECL) is assessed according to set criteria. All prisoners who are potentially eligible will be screened against these criteria. We will not release:
	Registered sex offenders, whether or not they are currently serving a sentence for a sexual offence;
	Prisoners serving sentences for serious violence;
	Prisoners who have previously escaped from custody;
	Prisoners who have previously breached temporary release conditions during the current sentence, have offended during a period under temporary release at any time, or prisoners currently serving a sentence for failing to return from temporary release;
	Prisoners with no accommodation arranged;
	Foreign national prisoners who will be subject to deportation at the end of their sentence;
	Prisoners who are subject to extradition proceedings;
	Sentenced prisoners who have been remanded into custody on further charges or who are awaiting sentence;
	Prisoners who, within the period of their current sentence, had been recalled either from HDC or from normal licence;
	Prisoners required to undertake a treatment programme as a condition of the normal (end of sentence) supervision licence that could not be arranged during the period of THL; and
	Prisoners who are under 18 years of age.

Prisoners Release

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for what period of time the Government's early release scheme for prisoners will be in operation; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The End of Custody Licence was introduced as a temporary measure but it is too early to say how long the scheme will be in operation. We will keep this under review in the light of new prison capacity coming on stream and the review by Lord Carter.

Prisoners Release: Reoffenders

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners who were released under the End Of Custody Licence on 29 June 2007 and 2 July 2007 have subsequently been rearrested for further suspected offences.

David Hanson: Nine offenders out of 1,390 (0.65 per cent.) released under the End of Custody Licence on 29 June and 2 July have subsequently been identified to the Ministry of Justice as having been arrested for further offending.

Prisons: Overcrowding

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps his Department has taken to address overcrowding in prisons; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The Ministry of Justice is dealing with pressures on the prison estate by building more capacity. A new capacity-building programme which will deliver 8,000 new prison places by 2012 was announced in July 2006 and a further 1,500 places were announced on 19 June 2007.
	In parallel, we will ensure that courts have tough community sentences at their disposal to deal with less serious, non violent offenders.
	On 19 June the Government announced the introduction of a presumption in favour of release on license for prisoners serving between four weeks and four years for the final 18 days of their sentence. This is a temporary measure to deal with immediate pressure on the prison estate.

Sexual Offences: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many probation officers are involved in the monitoring of sex offenders in each police force area in Wales.

David Hanson: As this is an operational matter we do not collect this information centrally. My officials are establishing whether these data are available from the four Probation Areas in Wales and I will write to the hon. Lady as soon as I know.

Victim Support Schemes: Fines

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will make a statement on the operation of victim surcharges; and what representations he has had from the magistracy on the effectiveness of surcharges, with particular reference to their effect on the level of fine defaulting.

Maria Eagle: An internal audit on the victims surcharge process within the courts is due to commence in August 2007. This will be followed in early 2008, by a further internal audit on the amount of victims surcharge being collected and allocated to the Victims Fund. A formal evaluation of the effect of the victims surcharge on the payment rate has not been undertaken, however the current year to date payment rate is 95 per cent. compared to 83 per cent. at the same period last year.
	The Office for Criminal Justice Reform is currently analysing the representations it has received on the victims surcharge. I will write to the hon. Member shortly with the details he requests and place a copy of the letter in the Library of the House.

Young Offender Institutions: Re-offenders

David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the rate of re-offending was of people held in each young offender institution in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: Offenders held in Young Offender Institutions can be aged between 15 and 21. We do not currently calculate re-offending rates for this age band.
	The most recent juvenile re-offending rates for those aged 15 to 17 who were discharged from custody were published in "Re-offending of juveniles: results from the 2004 cohort". This covers juvenile offenders who were released from all kinds of custody, these include Secure Training Centres (STCs) and Local Authority Secure Children's Homes (LASCHs), in the first quarters of 2000 and 2004, in England and Wales. 77.8 per cent. of 15 to 17-year-old juveniles released from custody in the 2004 cohort re-offended during the following 12 months. The figure for the 2000 cohort was 78.2 per cent. The actual re-offending rate is the percentage of offenders who re-offended during a one year follow-up period and who subsequently received a pre-court disposal or were convicted in court. This is discussed further in the Statistical Bulletin which can be found at;
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb1006.pdf
	For those aged 18 to 20, the most recent re-offending rates for offenders discharged from custody were published in "Re-offending of adults: results from the 2004 cohort". This covers offenders who were released from all prisons in the first quarter of 2004, for England and Wales. 74.8 per cent. of offenders aged 18 to 20 in the 2004 cohort re-offended during the 24 month follow up period. The figures for previous years were 74.8 per cent. in 2003, 77.9 per cent. in 2002 and 77.4 per cent. in 2000. For this age group, the actual re-offending rate is the percentage of offenders who re-offended during a two year follow-up period and who were subsequently convicted in court. This is discussed further in the Statistical Bulletin which can be found at;
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs07/hosb0607.pdf
	The datasets used to provide these figures do not contain information about the institutions from which the juveniles and young offenders were released and therefore separate figures for YOIs are not available. Furthermore, juveniles and young offenders may be moved between institutions while serving their sentences so it is difficult to relate their re-offending to any particular institution.
	Juvenile re-offending rates for years other than 2000 and 2004 are not available. Re-offending rates for 18 to 20-year-olds are not available for 2001.

Young Offenders: Police Cautions

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what advice the Department offered to those authorities issuing conditional cautions to ensure that a responsible adult is always present when being issued to a minor.

David Hanson: The conditional caution scheme brought in by the Criminal Justice Act 2003 does not apply to those aged under 18. The Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill currently before Parliament does contain a proposal to extend conditional cautions to those aged 16-17. The proposal, at Clause 53 and Schedule 11 of the Bill, includes a commitment to prepare a Code of Practice for what will be called the youth conditional caution. That code will include details of the safeguards that should be observed when dealing with young people including ensuring that the existing appropriate adult process is used.

Cardiovascular System: Diseases

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans he has to meet patient groups representing those diagnosed with peripheral arterial disease;
	(2)  what programmes are  (a) planned and  (b) in place to raise awareness of peripheral arterial disease with (i) the public and (ii) health professionals.

Ann Keen: There are no plans at the current time to meet patient groups representing those diagnosed with peripheral arterial disease.
	There no programmes planned or in place to raise awareness specifically for peripheral arterial disease with the public or health professionals.
	However, the risk factors which increase an individual's chances of developing peripheral arterial disease include smoking, drinking alcohol, poor diet and lack of physical activity. Through the public health White Paper 'Choosing Health' the Department has set out a programme of action to help improve the health of the public including action on smoking and diet. This builds on existing work such as campaigns on smoking and diet, National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines on the management of hypertension, points for prevention activities in the general practitioner contract and support for the Blood Pressure Association's blood pressure awareness campaigns.
	The Coronary heart disease and diabetes national service frameworks have also driven forward improvements in primary and secondary prevention of risk factors associated with circulatory disease in general. This includes better control of blood pressure and blood glucose, cholesterol management and the use of aspirin.

Dental Services: Finance

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total value of NHS orthodontic treatment was in each of the last five years, broken down by primary care trust.

Ann Keen: Data identifying the value of orthodontic treatment alone by financial years and for specific local areas are not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	However a special analysis of general dental services costs over a 12 month reference period from 1 October 2004 to 30 September 2005 was prepared to help calculate funding levels for the new primary dental service arrangements introduced from 1 April 2006. Tables have been placed in the Library which draw on that analysis and set out the total payments during that 12 month reference period for all courses of treatment which included an element of orthodontic care in each of the primary care trusts in England operational at the time.

Dental Services: Manpower

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many orthodontists worked in the NHS in each year since 1997.

Ann Keen: The following table sets out the numbers of dentists working in the orthodontic speciality in the hospital or community health services as at 30 September for each year from 1997 to 2006.
	
		
			  Number of hospital and community health services (HCHS): medical and dental staff working within the orthodontics specialty, grade and year, England as at 30 September each year 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			  Headcount 
			 All staff 509 501 504 513 506 508 522 521 552 544 
			 Consultant 153 153 157 161 154 161 178 180 206 189 
			 Associate specialist 8 8 7 10 11 13 14 18 22 21 
			 Staff grade 14 10 10 14 14 9 12 18 21 12 
			 Registrar group 96 103 98 93 99 114 102 104 120 139 
			 Senior house officer 14 16 18 8 16 16 16 18 12 9 
			 House officer — 1 1 — — — — — 2 1 
			 Hospital practitioner/ Clinical assistant 222 208 212 227 212 195 200 183 164 162 
			 Other 2 2 1 — — — — — 5 11 
			
			  Full time equivalents 
			 All staff 275 280 285 277 290 301 313 324 355 362 
			 Consultant 129 128 138 141 137 142 155 158 176 164 
			 Associate specialist 3 4 3 4 6 6 6 9 13 10 
			 Staff grade 7 4 4 5 8 4 6 8 9 6 
			 Registrar group 85 92 86 82 90 104 97 99 118 135 
			 Senior house officer 12 13 17 7 16 16 16 18 11 9 
			 House officer — 1 1 — — — — — 1 0 
			 Hospital practitioner/ Clinical Assistant 39 37 35 37 34 29 33 31 26 33 
			 Other 1 1 1 — — — — — 2 6 
			  Notes: 1. '—' denotes zero 2. '0' denotes more than zero, less than one.  Source: The Information Centre for health and social care medical and dental workforce census. 
		
	
	Most NHS orthodontic treatment is provided by dentists in primary care, generally working under general dental services (CDS) contracts or personal dental services (PDS) agreements. However the numbers of dentists providing orthodontic treatment under CDS or PDS could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Dental Services: Yorkshire and Humberside

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average number of patients per NHS dentist was in Beverley and Holderness in each year since 1999; and if he will make a statement.

Ann Keen: The information is not available in the format requested. The following table shows the numbers of patients registered per national health service dentist within the Beverley and Holderness constituency, as at 31 March 1999 to 2006. This information is based on the old contractual arrangements.
	
		
			  Number of patients registered per NHS dentist within Beverley and Holderness constituency, as at 31 March each year 
			   Number 
			 1999 1,320 
			 2000 1,423 
			 2001 1,350 
			 2002 1,326 
			 2003 1,420 
			 2004 1,435 
			 2005 1,176 
			 2006 1,266 
			  Notes: 1. No account is taken of the level of service, if any, that each dentist provides. 2. Dentists consist of principals, assistants and trainees. Information on NHS dentistry in the community dental service, in hospitals and in prisons is excluded.  Sources: The Information Centre for health and social care Business Services Authority Dental Services Division (NHSBSA DSD) 
		
	
	Numbers of registrations no longer forms part of the data available under the new NHS dental contractual arrangements, introduced on 1 April 2006. The new measure is patients seen in the previous 24 months and is not comparable to the registration data for earlier years.
	Numbers of patients seen in the previous 24 months per dentists on open NHS contracts as at 31 March 2007 are available by strategic health authority (SHA) and primary care trust (PCT) area. The latest information for East Riding of Yorkshire PCT is provided in the following table. To provide these data at constituency level would incur disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Number of patients seen in the previous 24 months per dentist (performer) on open NHS contracts within East Riding of Yorkshire PCT as at 31 March 2007 
			   Number 
			 2007 1,868 
			  Notes: 1. A performer is defined as a dentist who has been set up on the NHSBSA DSD Payments online POL system by the PCT to work under an open contract during the relevant time period. Data provided are a count of the individuals listed as performers on open contracts within a PCT, including orthodontists. No allowance is made for the level of service, if any, that the individual performer has delivered during the given period. 2. Dentists consist of performers in general dental services, personal dental services and trust-led dental services. 3. The numbers of dentists as at 31 March 2007are provisional and are subject to revision. The final work force figures for 2006-07 will not be available until August 2007 when the Information Centre will publish an end year report on the first 12 months of the new contractual arrangements. 4. Patients have been identified by using surname, first initial, gender and date of birth. 5. Number of patients seen is recorded according to the location of the dentist.  Sources: The Information Centre for health and social care Business Services Authority Dental Services Division (NHSBSA DSD)

Dentists

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dentists worked within the NHS in each year since 1997; and how many provided  (a) primary and  (b) secondary care.

Ann Keen: Numbers of national health service dentists in England as at 31 March 1997 to 2006 are available in the 'NHS Dental Activity and Workforce Report England: 31 March 2006'. Annex E also contains information at strategic health authority (SHA) and primary care trust (PCT) area. Information at parliamentary constituency area is available in Annex G.
	This information is based on the contractual arrangements that applied until April 2006. This report is available in the Library and is also available at:
	www.ic.nhs.uk/statistics-and-data-collections/primary-care/dentistry/mhs-dental-activity-and-workforce-report-england-31-march-2006.
	Numbers of NHS dentists in England as at 30 June, 30 September, 31 December 2006 and 31 March 2007 are available in Table G of Annex 3 of the 'NHS Dental Statistics for England Q4:31 March 2007' report.
	This report is available in the Library and is also available at:
	www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/dentalq4.
	The figures for 31 March 2007 and the earlier quarters in the 2006-07 year are provisional and are subject to revision. The final workforce figure for 2006-07 will not be available until August 2007 when the Information Centre for health and social care will publish an end year report on the first 12 months of the new contractual arrangements. This information is based on the new dental contractual arrangements and is not directly comparable with earlier information.
	The figures for 31 December 2006 and 31 March 2007 include some salaried dentists who will also be included in the Hospital and Community Health Service figures are shown as follows.
	Information on the number of dentists working in the hospital and community health services is set out in the table.
	
		
			  Hospital and Community Health Services (HCHS) : dental staff by year: England as at 30 September each year 
			   Numbers (headcount) 
			 1997 3,567 
			 1998 3,610 
			 1999 3,616 
			 2000 3,530 
			 2001 3,532 
			 2002 3,654 
			 2003 3,763 
			 2004 3,852 
			 2005 3,970 
			 2006 3,909 
			  Source:   The Information Centre for health and social care Medical and Dental Workforce Census

Departments: Public Expenditure

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 20 June 2007,  Official Report, column 1899W, on Departments: Public Expenditure, for which private finance initiative schemes his Department had to gain HM Treasury's approval in  (a) 2006-07,  (b) 2005-06 and  (c) 2004-05.

Ben Bradshaw: The following table gives details of the private finance initiative schemes which gained HM Treasury approval for their full business cases since 2004 under the prevailing delegated limits.
	
		
			   Scheme  Capital value (£ million) 
			 2004 Barking, Havering and Redbridge Hospitals NHS Trust 238 
			  Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust 265 
			  Central Manchester and Manchester Children's Hospitals NHS Trust 512 
			
			 2005 Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust 299 
			  Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust 129 
			  Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust 326 
			  Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust 236 
			
			 2006 St. Helens Hospitals NHS Trust 338 
			  University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Trust 627 
			  Baits and The London Hospitals NHS Trust 1000 
			
			 2007 Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust 343 
			  University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust 306

Disability Aids: Children

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the availability of communication aids to disabled children; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: We have not made any assessment of the availability of communication aids to disabled children.
	The Transforming Community Equipment Services project is developing a market model for the provision of community equipment, including communication aids.
	Responsibility for assessing people's individual communication aids needs rests with local health and social care agencies. They are in the best position to determine local service priorities, using the increasing resources that the Government have made available.

Doctors: Foreign Workers

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health who chose the 5 February 2007 date set for the Home Office stamp to be placed in the passports of Highly Skilled Migrant Programme doctors; why it was chosen; what other dates were considered; what process of consultation took place on the choice of date; whether responses were received from  (a) the Home Department,  (b) representatives of doctors in training and  (c) directors of medical training; who has the power to (i) change the date and (ii) accept a Home Department letter in place of the Home Office stamp; what estimate he has made of the number of (A) junior doctors and (B) medical directors who were unaware of the details of the requirement; and what information was available to Ministers at the time it would take for (x) Highly Skilled Migrant Programme status to be granted and (y) the stamp to be placed in a passport.

Ben Bradshaw: The Conference of Post Graduate Medical Deans Steering Group for Recruitment and Selection for Specialty Training was created to establish the rules and criteria for entry to specialty training in 2007. Its membership included post-graduate deans for medical education, representatives of employers, deanery recruitment teams, royal colleges, trainee doctors and the Department. The steering group agreed that all eligibility criteria including for example General Medical Council registration, Royal College exams, English language proficiency and the right to work in the United Kingdom, would be assessed on the last date on which applications to the 2007 recruitment could be submitted. The date was originally set at 4 February. When the application period was extended until 5 February the date for assessing eligibility criteria was also extended. The decision to set the assessment of eligibility criteria on 5 February was a practical one, designed to ensure that all doctors would be subject to the same criteria, and that eligibility was fixed at the start of the process rather than being subject to change at any time, creating operational difficulties.
	The Home Office advised that the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme approval letter does not grant doctors leave to remain in the United Kingdom under the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme and so was not accepted when the assessment of a candidate's right to work was made.
	The eligibility criteria for round 2 have been published and no changes have been made.

Donors

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures his Department has considered to increase the number of organs retrieved from  (a) heart-beating and  (b) non-heart beating donors.

Ann Keen: The Department launched "Saving Lives, Valuing Donors: A Transplant Framework for England" in 2003 and the National Service Framework for Renal Services in 2004. These set out the Department's key aims for organ and tissue transplantation over the following 10 years. Over the last five years, Government investment in hospital based initiatives has helped increase live and non heart-beating donor rates. An organ donor taskforce will report to Ministers in autumn 2007 on how organ donor rates can be further improved.

Health Services: Training

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many training commissions there were for the main health service professions, including podiatrys between 2001 and 2006.

Ann Keen: The number of training commissions for nurses and all allied health professionals including chiropodists/podiatrists between 2001-02 and 2005-06 is shown in the table.
	The second table shows the number of trainee doctors who entered medical school between 2001-02 and 2005-06.
	
		
			  Pre registration training commissions 
			 of which: 
			   Nursing  All allied health professionals  Chiropody/podiatry 
			 2001-02 20,624 5,513 345 
			 2002-03 21,523 6,454 427 
			 2003-04 22,815 7,098 451 
			 2004-05 23,377 7,456 559 
			 2005-06 23,230 7,640 446 
			  Source: NMET Quarterly Monitoring Returns 
		
	
	
		
			   Medical school intake 
			 2001-02 4,713 
			 2002-03 5,277 
			 2003-04 6,082 
			 2004-05 6,294 
			 2005-06 6,314 
			  Source: HEFCE

Health Services: Training

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 21 June 2007,  Official Report, column 2178W, on health services: training, if he will publish validated data relating to expenditure and training in 2006-07, broken down by strategic health authority.

Ann Keen: The following table shows the 2006-07 Multi Professional Education and Training (MPET) allocations made to strategic health authorities (SHAs) and the actual outturn expenditure reported by the SHAs.
	2006-07 MPET allocation and expenditure
	
		
			  £ 000 
			  SHA  2006-07 allocation  2006-07 outturn  Variance 
			 East Midlands 276,532 254,930 21,602 
			 Eastern 291,090 258,953 32,137 
			 London 898,301 823,584 74,717 
			 North East 199,527 189,623 9,904 
			 North West 500,102 467,240 32,862 
			 South Central 256,782 223,683 33,099 
			 South East Coast 201,456 174,302 27,154 
			 South West 308,193 272,016 36,177 
			 West Midlands 350,911 304,652 46,259 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 484,048 440,461 43,587 
			 England Total 3,766,940 3,409,444 357,496 
			  Notes: 1. All figures are provisional. 2. Allocation figures do not include any money recurrently remapped from service.

Health: Stockport

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the percentage of people in Stockport who have long-term illnesses.

Ann Keen: In the 2005 Healthcare Commission primary care trust (PCT) survey of patients, 34 per cent. of respondents in Stockport PCT responded yes to the question Do you have a long-standing physical or mental health problem or disability?

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many people  (a) received an Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate test for kidney function,  (b) were referred to a nephrologist for further investigation and  (c) received treatment for chronic kidney disease in the last 12 months for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many people received treatment for the management of chronic kidney disease in each year since 2000.

Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally and there are no plans to collect data on these specific issues.
	The overwhelming majority of people with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are under the care of general practitioners and do not need to be seen by secondary or tertiary hospital services.
	At general practice level, the maintenance of a practice register of patients with CKD became a part of the quality and outcomes framework in April 2006, which should mean that a very comprehensive CKD dataset will develop over the next few years.
	Data on people newly diagnosed with CKD for the year 2006-07 should be available from September 2007.

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people received renal replacement therapy in each year since 2000; and what estimate his Department has made of the number of people likely to receive renal replacement therapy over the next 10 years.

Ann Keen: According to the renal registry, actual numbers at 31 December each year were as follows.
	
		
			   England 
			 2000 29,074 
			 2001 30,042 
			 2002 31,009 
			 2003 32,297 
			 2004 33,644 
			 2005 34,975 
		
	
	Projected growth in numbers on renal replacement therapy is set out in the National Service Framework for Renal Services. It is predicted that numbers will arise to around 45,000 over the 10 years ending in 2014.

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many people with established renal failure waited longer than six months to be referred for assessment and surgery prior to receiving haemodialysis in each of the last four years for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many people with established renal failure waited longer than four months to be referred for assessment and surgery prior to receiving peritoneal dialysis in each of the last four years for which figures are available.

Ann Keen: There is no specific waiting list for dialysis. Dialysis is often an emergency treatment and patients with no kidney function will die in a matter of weeks if they do not receive dialysis. For patients whose disease has been identified well in advance of end-stage renal failure, dialysis begins at a time when the individual and his or her consultant feel is appropriate. Part 1 of the National Service Framework for Renal Services recommends starting to prepare people for dialysis about a year before it will be needed, as such preparation leads to better outcomes for the patient.

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance is issued to GPs concerning estimated glomerula filtration rate test results for kidney function.

Ann Keen: The National Service Framework (NSF) for Renal Services recommended that, when kidney function is assessed and monitored, the most sensitive way to detect kidney disease is by use of a formula-based estimation of glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). To support the introduction of eGFR reporting, in 2006 the Department issued an information pack to the national health service. This consists of fact sheets which were sent to all general practitioners practices and pathology laboratories, explaining how to calculate and interpret eGFR, together with a note on frequently asked questions.

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dialysis machines were available for use within the NHS in each year since 2000; and how many were located in  (a) hospital renal units,  (b) satellite units and  (c) at patients' homes.

Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally on a regular basis. The Department commissioned the United Kingdom Renal Registry to undertake a one off UK-wide survey in 2003 which identified (in 2002) 1,313 dialysis stations in hospital units in England, 1,268 in satellite units and 482 in people's homes. The number will almost certainly have grown significantly since.

Kidney Patients: Medical Treatments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people received  (a) haemodialysis and  (b) peritoneal dialysis in NHS facilities in each year since 2000.

Ann Keen: Information on the services provided specifically in national health services facilities are not collated centrally, as almost all United Kingdom haemodialysis facilities, whether operated by the NHS itself or the independent sector, are contracted to the NHS.
	As at 31 December each year, the numbers of patients receiving NHS services for renal dialysis in England, whether in NHS or independent sector settings, were as follows:
	
		
			   Haemodialysis  Peritoneal Dialysis 
			 2000 10,651 4,741 
			 2001 11,235 4,673 
			 2002 11,789 4,605 
			 2003 12,961 4,455 
			 2004 13,875 4,333 
			 2005 14,438 4,227

Maternity Services: Manpower

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) maternities and  (b) full-time equivalent midwives there were in England in each year since 1997; how many full-time equivalent midwives per 1,000 maternities there were in each year; and what definition his Department uses of maternity.

Ann Keen: The number of maternities is collected by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) through birth registration, and published in FM1, Birth Statistics.
	
		
			   Number of maternities 
			 1997 602,452 
			 1998 596,413 
			 1999 583,923 
			 2000 567,297 
			 2001 558,271 
			 2002 560,332 
			 2003 584,450 
			 2004 601,467 
			 2005 607,090 
		
	
	The latest data available for the number of maternities in England is for 2005. Provisional data for 2006 shows that there were 669,531 live births in England. The number of births is not the number of maternities, due to multiple births and still births.
	The number of full-time equivalent (FTE) midwives is collected by the Information Centre (previously collected by the Department) in the Non-Medical Workforce Census, an annual snapshot census on 30 September.
	
		
			   FTE midwives 
			 1997 18,053 
			 1998 18,168 
			 1999 17,876 
			 2000 17,662 
			 2001 18,048 
			 2002 18,119 
			 2003 18,444 
			 2004 18,854 
			 2005 18,949 
			 2006 18,862 
		
	
	The latest available data is for 2006.
	The previous data can be used to calculate the number of FTE midwives per 1,000 maternities:
	
		
			   Midwives per 1,000 maternities 
			 1997 30.0 
			 1998 30.5 
			 1999 30.6 
			 2000 31.1 
			 2001 32.3 
			 2002 32.3 
			 2003 31.6 
			 2004 31.3 
			 2005 31.2 
			  Notes:  1. This data is collected using the ONS definition of a maternity: "A confinement resulting in the birth of one or more live-born or stillborn children." Therefore, the number of maternities is less than the total number of live births and stillbirths.  2. A still birth is a child that has issued forth from its mother after the 24th week of pregnancy, and that did not at any time after being completely expelled from its mother breathe or show any signs of life. Loss of the foetus before 24 weeks is not recorded as a still birth, but as a miscarriage.

Medical Treatments: EU Countries

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans he has to improve the on-line application service for European health insurance cards;
	(2)  how many complaints his Department has received about the on-line application procedure for the European health insurance card in the last 12 months;
	(3)  what mechanism his Department has for monitoring the performance of the on-line application service for the European health insurance card.

Dawn Primarolo: The Department receives a lot of correspondence (this includes phone calls, letters and emails) relating to the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). This is not broken down into category and we do not therefore have a figure for the number of complaints concerning the online application service. The online application service is very successful with 3.3 million cards being issued between 1 June 2006 and 31 May 2007 using this process (nearly 60 per cent. of all applications). Feedback received is that our normal speed of service is particularly valued.
	Performance of the EHIC service is monitored through regular service level agreement meetings with the Business Services Authority (BSA) who administer the scheme. Feedback is regularly reviewed by both the Department and the BSA and improvements to the service including the online application service are made as required.

NHS: Consultants

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 14 June 2007,  Official Report, column 1314W to the hon. Member for Rayleigh on NHS: consultants, what the names were of the working groups and reference groups set up during the negotiation and implementation of the consultant contract;
	(2)  what the membership of each of the working groups and reference groups was.

Ann Keen: During the negotiations for the consultant contract there were a number of informal reference and working groups from 2001-04. These groups conducted business in meetings but also covered a large amount of business via e-mail. These groups did not have official titles. The main groups were:
	the negotiation group—which included national health service chief executives, medical directors, human resources directors, and representation from the NHS Confederation;
	a wider reference group—which included a wider range of representatives from NHS
	employing organisations; and
	implementation group—members from NHS Modernisation Agency, NHS Confederation, strategic health authorities and NHS employing organisations.

NHS: ICT

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 25 June 2007,  Official Report, column 747W, on NHS: ICT, in which document the Cabinet Office best practice is set out.

Ben Bradshaw: Strategic guidance is provided on the Cabinet Office website under IT in Government and can be accessed at:
	www.cio.gov.uk/reliable_project_delivery/index.asp.
	Two further basic references, recommended by the Office of Government Commerce which support operational governance for the national programme for IT are PRINCE 2 and Managing Successful Programmes. These can be found at:
	www.ogc.gov.uk/methods_prince_2.asp and
	www.ogc.gov.uk/delivery_lifecycle_overview_of_managing_ successful_programmes_msp_.asp
	In addition, Improving Programme and Project Delivery available at www.pm.gov.uk/files/pdf/ippd.pdf is an example of other documentation available on government websites which provide helpful guidance in this area.

NHS: Procurement

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans his Department has to review NHS purchasing processes, with particular reference to enabling clinicians to commission appropriate technologies where hospital-acquired infections are concerned;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on NHS purchasing processes, with particular reference to the delivery of effective management of hospital acquired infections.

Ben Bradshaw: All national health service procurement must fully comply with European Union regulations and be a transparent process. Proper emphasis must be placed on guidance provided by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and information on products provided by the centre for evidence based purchasing. However, the Government recognise the need to ensure swift access for clinicians to products which are innovative and effective in supporting the reduction in healthcare associated infections, and processes are being reviewed to meet this challenge.
	A best practice procurement framework has been developed as part of the health industry taskforce outcomes to ensure NHS procurement is aligned to NHS objectives and delivers outputs that are relevant. This framework will also ensure better decision-making in the NHS through category management and sourcing groups managed locally by the collaborative procurement hubs.
	By working within this new framework the key targets and objectives of health and social care, such as health care associated infection, can be appropriately aligned with benefits to be derived from procurement.
	Currently there are no plans to review NHS procurement processes.

Transplant Surgery: Kidneys

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were removed from the national transplant list for kidneys without completing an organ transplant in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Ann Keen: The number of patients removed from the United Kingdom kidney transplant list, during 2004-06 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Status  2004  2005  2006 
			 Removed(1) 377 426 326 
			 Died 281 306 293 
			 Total 658 732 619 
			 (1) There are many reasons for removal, for example, condition improved, condition deteriorated. Patients can be reregistered following removal.

Water: Schools

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on the  (a) provision of water in schools and  (b) effect of dehydration on mental performance.

Ann Keen: The Department has not discussed with the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families the provision of water in schools or the effect of dehydration on mental performance.
	It is important that children develop a healthy diet, and a school plays an important role in helping to introduce and reinforce these behaviours. Through the national Healthy Schools programme run jointly between the Department, and the Department for Children, Schools and Families, schools are doing a lot of work to improve diet which, for example by phasing out items which are low in nutritional value such as fizzy drinks. Teachers tell us that improved diet has had both health and other benefits such as calmer children that are better behaved and a ready to learn. Good hydration helps to reduce tiredness, irritability, and increases concentration. It also contributes to a more settled and productive learning environment.